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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 124 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 sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. spring — a coil
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. spring — the season
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. last — final
  10. bank — of a river
  11. court — for sport
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. spring — of water
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. last — to go on
  17. court — of a king
  18. bulb — for light
  19. court — of law
  20. bank — for money
  21. last — finally
  22. bank — for money
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. bulb — for light

Multiple-meaning words list

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

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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