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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  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. bark — of a tree
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. bass — low music
  5. cap — a lid
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. bark — to shout
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. cold — not warm
  11. cold — an illness
  12. rule — a law
  13. cap — of ice
  14. swing — in golf
  15. swing — music
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. swing — to play on
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. rule — government
  22. cap — a hat
  23. bass — the fish
  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