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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. bear — the animal
  3. bark — to shout
  4. club — for dancing
  5. degree — an amount
  6. capital — a city
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. pop — to visit
  9. degree — from a university
  10. pop — soda
  11. capital — money
  12. club — for golf
  13. tear — from crying
  14. degree — temperature
  15. land — to come down
  16. pop — music
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. club — a group
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. tear — from crying
  23. land — ground
  24. land — a country

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