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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. hand — help
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. present — there
  8. mug — to rob
  9. fine — high quality
  10. bark — to shout
  11. last — finally
  12. mug — a face
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bulb — for light
  15. fine — all right
  16. last — to go on
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. mug — a cup
  19. present — a gift
  20. march — the month
  21. march — music
  22. last — final
  23. march — the month
  24. hand — in cards

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