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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. row — a line
  3. prune — to trim
  4. bark — to shout
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. wake — a trail
  7. pound — a weight
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. capital — money
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. prune — to trim
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. capital — a city
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. swing — music
  22. row — to paddle
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. swing — to play on

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