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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. drill — a practice
  4. stock — goods
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. fine — all right
  7. drill — the tool
  8. drill — army training
  9. file — a tool
  10. fine — high quality
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. stock — shares
  15. snap — to click
  16. bark — to shout
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — for light
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. file — a document
  21. dip — to sink
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. file — a line of people

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