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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. present — there
  4. file — a line of people
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. date — the fruit
  7. bark — to shout
  8. fine — all right
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. file — a document
  11. present — a gift
  12. season — of the year
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. bat — the animal
  15. file — a tool
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. fine — high quality
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. present — the time now
  21. season — in sport
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. season — to add flavour

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