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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. capital — money
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. spring — the season
  7. stock — goods
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. march — the month
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. chair — a leader
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. march — music
  18. stock — shares
  19. capital — a city
  20. spring — of water
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. march — the month

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