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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. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. land — to come down
  3. season — of the year
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. kid — to tease
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. bark — to shout
  8. bulb — for light
  9. file — a document
  10. season — in sport
  11. land — ground
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. swing — to play on
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. land — a country
  17. swing — in golf
  18. bulb — for light
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. file — a tool
  22. swing — music
  23. kid — child
  24. file — a line of people

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