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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 120 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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bound — tied together
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. spell — letters
  9. spell — magic
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. spell — a short time
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bound — obliged
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. chest — a box
  16. bulb — for light
  17. chest — of your body
  18. dip — to sink
  19. bound — certain
  20. shower — rain
  21. bulb — for light
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. shower — to wash

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