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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. bark — to shout
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. rash — a series
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. prune — to trim
  9. fine — high quality
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. face — part of the head
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. rash — hasty
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. face — to point toward
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. swing — in golf
  21. face — to confront
  22. prune — to trim
  23. fine — all right
  24. swing — music

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com