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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. mate — a friend
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. mine — for digging
  6. bark — to shout
  7. fall — to drop
  8. rest — what's left
  9. fall — the season
  10. fall — to drop
  11. plane — a tool
  12. race — humankind
  13. prune — to trim
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. mate — to breed
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — a contest
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. rest — a break
  21. prune — to trim
  22. mate — a partner
  23. rest — what's left
  24. prune — the fruit

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