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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. mine — for digging
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. chip — for betting
  7. bark — to shout
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. chip — to eat
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. rash — hasty
  14. last — final
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. dip — to sink
  17. court — for sport
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — of law
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. last — to go on
  24. last — finally

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