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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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. face — to confront
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. shower — rain
  6. drill — a practice
  7. band — a ring
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. capital — a city
  12. bark — to shout
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. band — a music group
  15. face — to point toward
  16. drill — the tool
  17. shower — to wash
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. capital — money
  21. face — part of the head
  22. deal — to handle
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. racket — a loud noise

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