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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. row — a line
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. bank — for money
  5. bank — of a river
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. bark — to shout
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — finally
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. wake — a trail
  14. saw — the tool
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. bank — for money
  18. last — final
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. face — to confront
  21. face — part of the head
  22. face — to point toward
  23. row — to paddle
  24. saw — the tool

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