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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. face — part of the head
  5. stock — goods
  6. shower — rain
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. face — to confront
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. cold — an illness
  14. shower — to wash
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. cold — not warm
  17. stock — shares
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. board — a committee
  22. board — to get on
  23. pitch — completely
  24. face — to point toward

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