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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  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. safe — a strongbox
  2. season — in sport
  3. march — the month
  4. bore — to tire
  5. spell — magic
  6. season — of the year
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. spell — letters
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. track — a song
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. march — music
  15. track — to keep track
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. spell — a short time
  19. bore — to drill
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. march — the month
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. track — a path
  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