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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. bat — the animal
  4. season — in sport
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. mate — a friend
  9. plane — a tool
  10. bound — obliged
  11. mate — to breed
  12. hand — help
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. hand — in cards
  16. bound — certain
  17. season — of the year
  18. mate — a partner
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. root — of a plant
  21. bark — to shout
  22. root — the cause
  23. bound — tied together
  24. root — of a word

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