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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. cold — not warm
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. season — of the year
  5. season — in sport
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bound — certain
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. key — the most important part
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. bound — obliged
  13. rush — hurry
  14. key — in music
  15. tube — the underground
  16. key — for a lock
  17. sharp — clever
  18. bound — tied together
  19. tube — a container
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. cold — an illness
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. season — to add flavour

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