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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. game — a match
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. rash — hasty
  10. object — to protest
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. object — a thing
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. mine — for digging
  16. row — to paddle
  17. game — wild animals
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. rash — a series
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. row — a line
  24. object — an aim

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