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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. club — a group
  7. track — to keep track
  8. bear — the animal
  9. hand — help
  10. bear — the animal
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. bore — to tire
  13. club — for golf
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. club — for dancing
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. track — a song
  18. march — the month
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. march — the month
  21. march — music
  22. hand — in cards
  23. bore — to drill
  24. bark — to shout

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