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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. file — a tool
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. spring — a coil
  7. bark — to shout
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. file — a document
  10. shower — to wash
  11. file — a line of people
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. spring — of water
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. board — to get on
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. board — a committee
  24. shower — rain

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