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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  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. bound — obliged
  3. wind — moving air
  4. saw — the tool
  5. spell — letters
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. spell — a short time
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. bear — the animal
  10. wind — moving air
  11. court — of a king
  12. bear — the animal
  13. spell — magic
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. bark — to shout
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. bound — tied together
  19. saw — the tool
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. court — of law
  22. court — for sport
  23. bound — certain
  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