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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. pass — a permit
  5. rock — music
  6. stand — to bear
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bear — the animal
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. court — of law
  13. rock — a stone
  14. bark — to shout
  15. court — of a king
  16. court — for sport
  17. tear — from crying
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tear — to rip

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