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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 ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. pop — soda
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. saw — the tool
  6. march — the month
  7. club — a group
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. pop — music
  10. club — for dancing
  11. march — music
  12. saw — the tool
  13. kick — in football
  14. bark — to shout
  15. dip — to sink
  16. pop — to visit
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. squash — to crush
  21. march — the month
  22. club — for golf
  23. squash — the sport
  24. bark — of a tree

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