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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. chest — of your body
  4. face — to point toward
  5. chest — a box
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. can — a tin
  9. roll — a list
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. chest — of your body
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. snap — to click
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. roll — a cake
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. face — to confront
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. face — part of the head
  23. bark — to shout
  24. can — to be able to

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