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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. pop — soda
  3. kid — to tease
  4. lie — to recline
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. cell — a phone
  7. wax — to grow
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. spring — a coil
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. pop — to visit
  12. spring — the season
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. cell — in biology
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. pop — music
  18. bark — to shout
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. spring — of water
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. kid — child
  24. pass — a permit

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