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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. spell — magic
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. staff — a stick
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. staff — employees
  10. face — part of the head
  11. plane — a tool
  12. spell — a short time
  13. face — to point toward
  14. face — to confront
  15. bark — to shout
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. branch — a division
  18. spell — letters
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. rash — hasty
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. rash — a series
  24. staff — employees

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