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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 120 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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. race — humankind
  3. present — a gift
  4. present — there
  5. spring — of water
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. bulb — for light
  8. race — the arms race
  9. swing — in golf
  10. plane — a tool
  11. bore — to tire
  12. race — a contest
  13. swing — to play on
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. bark — to shout
  16. present — the time now
  17. spring — a coil
  18. swing — music
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bore — to drill
  21. bulb — for light
  22. spring — the season
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. plane — an aircraft

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