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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. spell — magic
  4. spell — letters
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. row — to paddle
  7. ground — crushed
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. ground — a position
  11. ground — the earth
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. bear — the animal
  14. pop — to visit
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bark — to shout
  17. bear — the animal
  18. pop — soda
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. pound — a weight
  22. row — a line
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. spell — a short time

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