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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. track — to keep track
  7. track — a path
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. spring — of water
  10. drill — a practice
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. stem — to come from
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. drill — army training
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. dip — to sink
  17. drill — the tool
  18. bark — to shout
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. spring — the season
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. track — a song
  24. spring — a coil

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