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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. shower — to wash
  5. ball — a great time
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. shower — rain
  9. tear — from crying
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. tear — to rip
  12. ball — a dance
  13. tear — from crying
  14. root — of a plant
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. bulb — for light
  17. root — of a word
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. root — the cause
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bark — to shout

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