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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 120 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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. pitch — completely
  5. bark — to shout
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — the animal
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. swing — to play on
  12. saw — the tool
  13. swing — music
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. last — to go on
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. swing — in golf
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. season — in sport
  20. last — finally
  21. season — of the year
  22. saw — the tool
  23. last — final
  24. temple — side of the head

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