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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bark — to shout
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. shower — to wash
  5. ball — a great time
  6. spring — a coil
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. shower — rain
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. spring — of water
  11. degree — temperature
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bulb — for light
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. ball — a dance
  17. stand — to bear
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. degree — an amount
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. degree — from a university
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. spring — the season

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