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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. chest — a box
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. board — a committee
  5. board — to get on
  6. branch — a division
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. wake — a trail
  9. bark — to shout
  10. snap — to click
  11. root — the cause
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. chest — of your body
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. pass — a permit
  18. chest — of your body
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. root — of a plant
  22. root — of a word
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. branch — of a tree

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