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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. bark — to shout
  5. tear — from crying
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. shower — rain
  8. tear — to rip
  9. shower — to wash
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. field — a subject
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. plane — a tool
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rest — what's left
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. field — for sport
  19. field — farmland
  20. rest — a break
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. tear — from crying

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