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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. bulb — for light
  3. spell — a short time
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. march — the month
  6. bulb — for light
  7. last — final
  8. branch — a division
  9. last — finally
  10. last — to go on
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. march — music
  15. chair — a leader
  16. spell — magic
  17. bound — tied together
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. bound — obliged
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bound — certain
  23. branch — of a bank
  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