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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 116 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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. chip — to eat
  3. pop — soda
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. last — to go on
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. capital — a city
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. chip — for betting
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. capital — money
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pop — to visit
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. last — final
  18. pop — music
  19. prune — to trim
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — the season
  22. prune — to trim
  23. last — finally
  24. ruler — for measuring

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