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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. ground — crushed
  5. spring — a coil
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. spring — the season
  8. tear — from crying
  9. dip — to sink
  10. suit — clothes
  11. tear — from crying
  12. prune — to trim
  13. spring — of water
  14. ground — a position
  15. tear — to rip
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. suit — in cards
  18. prune — to trim
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. suit — to fit
  22. ground — the earth
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. bark — to shout

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