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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. press — a publisher
  3. shower — rain
  4. shower — to wash
  5. chest — a box
  6. press — newspapers
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. snap — to click
  9. march — music
  10. march — the month
  11. mine — for digging
  12. bark — to shout
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. chest — of your body
  15. pop — soda
  16. press — to push
  17. chest — of your body
  18. pop — to visit
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. pop — music
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. march — the month
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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