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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. stand — to bear
  3. mine — for digging
  4. degree — from a university
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. can — a tin
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. degree — an amount
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. wind — moving air
  12. degree — temperature
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. dip — to sink
  17. bark — to shout
  18. can — to be able to
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. wind — moving air
  23. can — a tin
  24. lash — to lash out

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