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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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. shower — rain
  3. bark — to shout
  4. net — for catching
  5. pit — a hole
  6. bore — to tire
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. net — after costs
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. present — the time now
  11. shower — to wash
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. net — in sport
  16. bore — to drill
  17. present — a gift
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. present — there
  20. scale — size or range
  21. rash — hasty
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. scale — in music
  24. bark — of a tree

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