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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 116 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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. season — of the year
  4. rash — hasty
  5. march — the month
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. march — music
  12. march — the month
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. season — in sport
  15. band — a ring
  16. snap — to click
  17. pit — a hole
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bark — to shout
  20. rash — a series
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. band — a music group
  23. pit — in a race
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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