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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. last — final
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. lie — to recline
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. rest — what's left
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bark — to shout
  12. rest — what's left
  13. last — to go on
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. stock — shares
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. wake — a trail
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. stock — goods
  22. rest — a break
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. wound — an injury

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