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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. bulb — for light
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. ground — crushed
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — the animal
  8. ground — the earth
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. cue — a hint
  12. cue — for pool
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. pound — a weight
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — to trim
  17. bark — to shout
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. bulb — for light
  20. shower — rain
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. ground — a position
  23. shower — to wash
  24. bulb — of a plant

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