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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. dip — to sink
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. squash — to crush
  6. drill — army training
  7. drill — a practice
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. drill — the tool
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. squash — the sport
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. ball — a dance
  15. wound — an injury
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. toast — bread
  24. ball — a great time

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