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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 116 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 sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. cap — a lid
  4. degree — an amount
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. spell — magic
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. bat — the animal
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. cap — a hat
  18. chip — to eat
  19. degree — temperature
  20. chip — for betting
  21. spell — letters
  22. spell — a short time
  23. degree — from a university
  24. cap — of ice

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