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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. spring — of water
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. spring — a coil
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. bore — to tire
  7. land — ground
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. land — to come down
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. bore — to drill
  16. bark — to shout
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. stand — to bear
  19. fork — in a road
  20. kid — to tease
  21. kid — child
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. land — a country
  24. spring — the season

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