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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. tear — to rip
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. last — to go on
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. snap — to click
  7. last — final
  8. last — finally
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. pass — a permit
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. club — for dancing
  15. club — a group
  16. tear — from crying
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. bark — to shout
  19. swing — in golf
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. tear — from crying
  23. swing — to play on
  24. swing — music

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