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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. march — the month
  4. march — music
  5. bark — to shout
  6. root — of a word
  7. snap — to click
  8. last — to go on
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. ground — a position
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. last — finally
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. ground — crushed
  17. root — of a plant
  18. ground — the earth
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. root — the cause
  21. march — the month
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. last — final
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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