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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  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. spell — a short time
  2. spell — magic
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. bark — to shout
  5. saw — the tool
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. cold — an illness
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. pit — in a race
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — for catching
  13. net — after costs
  14. saw — the tool
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. pit — a hole
  21. cold — not warm
  22. spell — letters
  23. bark — of a tree
  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