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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. ball — a great time
  5. ground — the earth
  6. ground — a position
  7. ball — a dance
  8. cell — a phone
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. rock — a stone
  11. ground — crushed
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. cell — in biology
  17. file — a document
  18. rock — music
  19. object — to protest
  20. object — an aim
  21. file — a line of people
  22. object — a thing
  23. file — a tool
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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