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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. spell — letters
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. club — for dancing
  5. spell — magic
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. swing — to play on
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. club — for golf
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. swing — in golf
  12. last — finally
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. stock — goods
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. last — final
  17. swing — music
  18. last — to go on
  19. stock — shares
  20. bark — to shout
  21. club — a group
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. spell — a short time

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