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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. club — for golf
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. bound — tied together
  8. plane — a tool
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. last — final
  12. club — for dancing
  13. last — to go on
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bark — to shout
  17. club — a group
  18. bound — obliged
  19. last — finally
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. bound — certain
  22. hand — in cards
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. hand — help

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