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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. pit — in a race
  5. kid — to tease
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. tube — the underground
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. tube — a container
  13. kid — child
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. prune — to trim
  18. bulb — for light
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. game — wild animals
  22. bulb — for light
  23. game — a match
  24. pit — a hole

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