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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. rest — what's left
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. swing — music
  7. cell — a phone
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. swing — in golf
  10. cell — in biology
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. mine — for digging
  13. face — to confront
  14. shower — to wash
  15. rest — a break
  16. shower — rain
  17. fine — all right
  18. fine — high quality
  19. face — part of the head
  20. face — to point toward
  21. swing — to play on
  22. bark — to shout
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. mine — belonging to me

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