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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. spring — of water
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. cap — a lid
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. spring — the season
  9. bark — to shout
  10. cap — a hat
  11. spring — a coil
  12. can — a tin
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. can — a tin
  15. cap — of ice
  16. rush — hurry
  17. foot — a measure
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. date — the fruit
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. rush — a thrill

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