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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. rest — a break
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. bark — to shout
  7. rash — hasty
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. wound — an injury
  11. roll — a cake
  12. swing — to play on
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. swing — in golf
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. wound — an injury
  18. rash — a series
  19. rest — what's left
  20. swing — music
  21. roll — a list
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. wake — a trail

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