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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. bark — to shout
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. pop — soda
  5. court — of law
  6. court — for sport
  7. swing — in golf
  8. last — to go on
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. pop — music
  11. swing — music
  12. spring — the season
  13. last — finally
  14. last — final
  15. swing — to play on
  16. present — a gift
  17. court — of a king
  18. spring — a coil
  19. bore — to tire
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. bore — to drill
  22. present — there
  23. pop — to visit
  24. spring — of water

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