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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. saw — the tool
  3. chest — a box
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. chest — of your body
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. last — final
  9. last — finally
  10. saw — the tool
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. rock — a stone
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. chest — of your body
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. sharp — clever
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. last — to go on
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. bark — to shout

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