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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. squash — to crush
  5. march — the month
  6. pop — soda
  7. squash — the sport
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. pop — music
  11. march — music
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. pop — to visit
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. dip — to sink
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. lie — to recline
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. bark — to shout
  22. march — the month
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. dip — a sauce

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