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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. lean — thin
  3. row — a line
  4. degree — an amount
  5. tube — a container
  6. season — in sport
  7. bark — to shout
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. rock — a stone
  12. rock — music
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. tube — the underground
  16. row — to paddle
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. season — of the year
  19. degree — from a university
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. lean — to bend
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. row — a quarrel

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