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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. saw — the tool
  5. mark — a grade
  6. mark — a trace
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. rule — a law
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. saw — the tool
  12. lean — to bend
  13. tube — a container
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. rule — government
  16. bark — to shout
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. cold — an illness
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. lean — thin
  23. cold — not warm
  24. leaves — to go away

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