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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. last — finally
  4. spell — a short time
  5. bark — to shout
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. last — to go on
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. spell — magic
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. mine — for digging
  13. cell — a phone
  14. present — there
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. present — a gift
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. present — the time now
  19. cell — in biology
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. last — final
  23. spell — letters
  24. ruler — for measuring

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