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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. deal — to handle
  4. spell — a short time
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. pop — to visit
  8. spell — magic
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. bark — to shout
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. content — happy
  13. spell — letters
  14. pop — soda
  15. cell — in biology
  16. content — the amount
  17. key — in music
  18. cell — a phone
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. key — the most important part
  21. key — for a lock
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. pop — music

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