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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. march — the month
  3. bulb — for light
  4. pop — soda
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. spring — the season
  7. game — a match
  8. pop — music
  9. tear — to rip
  10. pop — to visit
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. bulb — for light
  15. tear — from crying
  16. game — wild animals
  17. spring — a coil
  18. march — music
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. tear — from crying
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. spring — of water
  23. bark — to shout
  24. march — the month

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