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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. spell — letters
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. spell — a short time
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. club — for golf
  7. club — for dancing
  8. board — to get on
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. present — there
  11. bark — to shout
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. board — a committee
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. club — a group
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. snap — to click
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. present — the time now
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. spell — magic

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