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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. prune — to trim
  3. key — in music
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. swing — music
  7. row — a line
  8. court — of law
  9. court — for sport
  10. row — to paddle
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. court — of a king
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. prune — to trim
  15. season — in sport
  16. cue — a hint
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. swing — to play on
  19. key — the most important part
  20. cue — a signal
  21. key — for a lock
  22. cue — for pool
  23. swing — in golf
  24. bark — to shout

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