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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. pit — a hole
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. pop — music
  6. land — ground
  7. land — a country
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. pop — soda
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. pit — in a race
  12. fine — high quality
  13. pop — to visit
  14. bark — to shout
  15. bat — the animal
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. lean — to bend
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. fine — all right
  24. land — to come down

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