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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. court — of a king
  4. spring — of water
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. cue — for pool
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. cue — a hint
  9. tube — a container
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. court — for sport
  12. spring — a coil
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. race — the arms race
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. court — of law
  17. spring — the season
  18. race — humankind
  19. tube — the underground
  20. bark — to shout
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. race — a contest
  24. cue — a signal

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