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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. sharp — clever
  6. rest — a break
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. present — a gift
  11. last — to go on
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. pass — a permit
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. rest — what's left
  17. present — the time now
  18. bark — to shout
  19. present — there
  20. last — final
  21. rest — what's left
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. last — finally
  24. row — to paddle

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