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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. degree — an amount
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. face — part of the head
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. degree — temperature
  9. fine — all right
  10. fine — high quality
  11. bark — to shout
  12. chest — a box
  13. pit — in a race
  14. chest — of your body
  15. pit — a hole
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. degree — from a university
  18. chest — of your body
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. face — to point toward
  23. face — to confront
  24. wake — before a funeral

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