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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. staff — employees
  3. bark — to shout
  4. staff — employees
  5. perch — the fish
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. board — a committee
  9. band — a ring
  10. board — to get on
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mine — for digging
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. ground — the earth
  19. pit — a hole
  20. ground — crushed
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. band — a music group
  23. pit — in a race
  24. staff — a stick

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