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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. bark — to shout
  3. swing — to play on
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. can — to be able to
  6. rule — a law
  7. swing — in golf
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. stock — shares
  10. can — a tin
  11. cold — an illness
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. rule — government
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. can — a tin
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. swing — music
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. cold — not warm
  24. stock — goods

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