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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 120 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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. shower — to wash
  3. file — a line of people
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. bear — the animal
  7. plane — a tool
  8. squash — the sport
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. shower — rain
  11. file — a document
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. bear — the animal
  14. file — a tool
  15. bark — to shout
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. squash — to crush
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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