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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 sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. bark — to shout
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. current — of water
  5. cell — in biology
  6. spell — a short time
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. season — in sport
  9. spring — the season
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. spell — letters
  13. wound — an injury
  14. spring — a coil
  15. current — electric
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. spell — magic
  19. cell — a phone
  20. current — happening now
  21. spring — of water
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. season — of the year
  24. wound — an injury

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