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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. firm — steady
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. tear — from crying
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. fall — the season
  10. spring — the season
  11. firm — a company
  12. bark — to shout
  13. tear — to rip
  14. drill — a practice
  15. spring — of water
  16. fall — to drop
  17. bear — the animal
  18. firm — decided
  19. spring — a coil
  20. fall — to drop
  21. bear — the animal
  22. tear — from crying
  23. drill — army training
  24. drill — the tool

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