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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. snap — to click
  3. land — a country
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. land — to come down
  6. tear — from crying
  7. club — for dancing
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. tear — from crying
  10. club — for golf
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. land — ground
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. row — to paddle
  17. bark — to shout
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. tear — to rip
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. chair — a leader
  24. club — a group

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