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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. spell — magic
  3. pop — music
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. rest — what's left
  6. spell — a short time
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. rest — a break
  10. spell — letters
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. rest — what's left
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. pop — to visit
  17. bark — to shout
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. pop — soda
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. foot — a measure
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. mouse — the animal

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