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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bat — the animal
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. dip — to sink
  8. shower — to wash
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. capital — money
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. spell — magic
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. spell — letters
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. bark — to shout
  23. shower — rain
  24. capital — a city

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