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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 116 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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. mine — for digging
  7. mate — to breed
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. rash — a series
  11. capital — money
  12. mate — a partner
  13. capital — a city
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. pass — a permit
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. rash — hasty
  18. bark — to shout
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. mate — a friend
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. rock — music
  24. rock — a stone

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