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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. content — happy
  5. bark — to shout
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. shower — rain
  8. track — to keep track
  9. row — to paddle
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. track — a song
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. spell — a short time
  16. track — a path
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. pound — a weight
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. row — a line
  21. shower — to wash
  22. spell — letters
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. spell — magic

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