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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. drill — a practice
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. club — for dancing
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. last — to go on
  7. drill — the tool
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. track — a song
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. drill — army training
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. last — finally
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. club — for golf
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. club — a group
  19. mine — for digging
  20. track — to keep track
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. bark — to shout
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. track — a path

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