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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. fine — high quality
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. rest — what's left
  5. spring — the season
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. drill — the tool
  10. fine — all right
  11. ground — a position
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. drill — a practice
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. bark — to shout
  16. ground — the earth
  17. ground — crushed
  18. rest — what's left
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. rest — a break
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. spring — a coil
  23. spring — of water
  24. drill — army training

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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