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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. fork — in a road
  5. bound — certain
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. shower — to wash
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. season — of the year
  11. bound — tied together
  12. shower — rain
  13. mine — for digging
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. bore — to drill
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. bore — to tire
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. bound — obliged
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. bark — to shout
  24. mine — belonging to me

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