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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 116 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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. snap — to click
  3. saw — the tool
  4. spell — letters
  5. fall — the season
  6. craft — a skill
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. spell — magic
  10. fall — to drop
  11. craft — boats
  12. fall — to drop
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. ground — a position
  15. bark — to shout
  16. ground — the earth
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bear — the animal
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. bear — the animal
  22. spell — a short time
  23. ground — crushed
  24. saw — the tool

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