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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. rock — a stone
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. rock — music
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bound — certain
  9. spring — a coil
  10. bound — tied together
  11. prune — to trim
  12. bound — obliged
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. chip — to eat
  18. bark — to shout
  19. chip — for betting
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — the season
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. pitch — completely

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