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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. scale — size or range
  3. game — wild animals
  4. lean — to bend
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. mate — a partner
  8. game — a match
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. mate — to breed
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. present — a gift
  14. bark — to shout
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. lean — thin
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. mate — a friend
  22. present — the time now
  23. present — there
  24. scale — in music

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