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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. fine — all right
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. pop — soda
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. fine — high quality
  12. mine — for digging
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. drill — a practice
  15. bound — obliged
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. bound — certain
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. bark — to shout
  20. drill — army training
  21. pop — to visit
  22. pass — a permit
  23. bound — tied together
  24. drill — the tool

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