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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. court — of a king
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. bark — to shout
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. court — of law
  10. spring — a coil
  11. court — for sport
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. spring — of water
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. foot — a measure
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bat — the animal
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. wind — moving air
  23. spring — the season
  24. wind — moving air

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