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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. file — a tool
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. ball — a dance
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. track — a path
  9. wake — a trail
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. track — to keep track
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. ball — a great time
  15. root — the cause
  16. root — of a plant
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. file — a document
  21. track — a song
  22. root — of a word
  23. file — a line of people
  24. ball — a round shape

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