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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. cell — a phone
  4. clip — to cut
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. prune — to trim
  7. clip — for paper
  8. spell — magic
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. clip — a video
  12. prune — to trim
  13. charge — a price
  14. charge — electricity
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. charge — in control
  17. spell — a short time
  18. spell — letters
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. cell — in biology
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. bark — to shout
  24. leaves — to go away

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