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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. ground — the earth
  4. bark — to shout
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. ground — a position
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. season — of the year
  9. game — a match
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. wax — to grow
  15. ground — crushed
  16. game — wild animals
  17. saw — the tool
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. saw — the tool
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. season — in sport

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