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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 124 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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. saw — the tool
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — of water
  6. chest — of your body
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. rule — government
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. rule — a law
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. chest — a box
  16. spring — the season
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. saw — the tool
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. cell — in biology
  21. cell — a phone
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. bark — 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