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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  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. present — a gift
  2. file — a document
  3. spell — a short time
  4. key — for a lock
  5. present — there
  6. file — a line of people
  7. pitch — completely
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bark — to shout
  10. spring — the season
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. key — the most important part
  13. spring — a coil
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. object — to protest
  16. present — the time now
  17. object — an aim
  18. file — a tool
  19. spell — letters
  20. spring — of water
  21. key — in music
  22. object — a thing
  23. spell — magic
  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