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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. cap — of ice
  3. firm — decided
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. firm — steady
  6. firm — a company
  7. drill — army training
  8. spell — a short time
  9. drill — a practice
  10. cold — not warm
  11. bark — to shout
  12. board — a committee
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. cap — a lid
  17. cap — a hat
  18. spell — magic
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. drill — the tool
  21. cold — an illness
  22. lie — to recline
  23. board — to get on
  24. lie — an untruth

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