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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 120 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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. bark — to shout
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. ball — a great time
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. scale — size or range
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. ball — a dance
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. hand — help
  20. pit — a hole
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. pit — in a race
  23. scale — in music
  24. branch — a division

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