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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. object — a thing
  4. spring — a coil
  5. squash — to crush
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. object — to protest
  8. squash — the sport
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. spring — the season
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. row — to paddle
  13. content — the amount
  14. last — final
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. last — finally
  17. bark — to shout
  18. last — to go on
  19. row — a line
  20. object — an aim
  21. spring — of water
  22. content — happy
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. ruler — a monarch

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