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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  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. wave — with your hand
  2. last — to go on
  3. lean — thin
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. object — a thing
  7. lean — to bend
  8. bark — to shout
  9. board — to get on
  10. content — the amount
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. ground — the earth
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. ground — crushed
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. content — happy
  17. ground — a position
  18. object — to protest
  19. object — an aim
  20. last — finally
  21. last — final
  22. board — a committee
  23. bark — of a tree
  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