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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 116 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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. prune — to trim
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. pop — to visit
  7. kick — in football
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. pop — music
  10. mark — a trace
  11. current — of water
  12. current — electric
  13. pop — soda
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bat — the animal
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. current — happening now
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. deal — to handle
  22. bark — to shout
  23. mark — a grade
  24. kick — with a leg

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