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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. chip — to eat
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. bark — to shout
  6. track — a path
  7. track — to keep track
  8. track — a song
  9. scale — in music
  10. bore — to tire
  11. scale — size or range
  12. chip — for betting
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. spell — magic
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. clip — to cut
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. spell — letters
  19. bore — to drill
  20. spell — a short time
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. clip — a video
  23. clip — for paper
  24. bore — gave birth

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