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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. spring — a coil
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. bark — to shout
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. pound — a weight
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. spring — the season
  11. can — a tin
  12. can — to be able to
  13. cell — a phone
  14. rock — a stone
  15. saw — the tool
  16. spring — of water
  17. cell — in biology
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. saw — the tool
  23. can — a tin
  24. pound — for dogs

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