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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. last — final
  3. last — to go on
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. band — a music group
  7. mark — a grade
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. rash — a series
  10. drill — the tool
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. squash — to crush
  13. drill — a practice
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. squash — the sport
  16. drill — army training
  17. rock — music
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. last — finally
  20. bark — to shout
  21. rash — hasty
  22. mark — a trace
  23. rock — a stone
  24. band — a ring

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