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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. chip — to eat
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. cue — for pool
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. branch — a division
  7. scale — size or range
  8. squash — the sport
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. spring — the season
  11. cue — a hint
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. scale — in music
  14. spring — a coil
  15. pit — a hole
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. squash — to crush
  18. cue — a signal
  19. chip — for betting
  20. bark — to shout
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. spring — of water
  23. pit — in a race
  24. squash — the vegetable

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