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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. bark — to shout
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. squash — to crush
  8. shower — to wash
  9. squash — the sport
  10. hand — help
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. mark — a trace
  14. pit — a hole
  15. snap — to click
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. hand — in cards
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. mark — a grade
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. pit — in a race
  24. shower — rain

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