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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 120 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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. can — a tin
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. saw — the tool
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. can — a tin
  8. saw — the tool
  9. can — to be able to
  10. ground — crushed
  11. charge — electricity
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. ground — a position
  17. charge — in control
  18. ground — the earth
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. row — a line
  21. row — to paddle
  22. bark — to shout
  23. charge — a price
  24. mine — for digging

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