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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  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 — a dog's sound
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. spring — the season
  4. sharp — clever
  5. bound — obliged
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. bark — to shout
  8. net — after costs
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. scale — in music
  11. spring — a coil
  12. spring — of water
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. net — in sport
  17. bound — tied together
  18. pit — in a race
  19. scale — size or range
  20. net — for catching
  21. bound — certain
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. rush — hurry
  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