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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. last — final
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. last — finally
  6. march — the month
  7. lie — to recline
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. capital — a city
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. staff — a stick
  13. staff — employees
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. last — to go on
  16. capital — money
  17. plane — a tool
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bark — to shout
  21. staff — employees
  22. march — the month
  23. perch — the fish
  24. march — music

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