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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. chest — of your body
  3. foot — a measure
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. deal — to handle
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. lean — thin
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. game — wild animals
  12. drill — army training
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. lean — to bend
  15. pass — a permit
  16. bark — to shout
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. chest — of your body
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. chest — a box
  23. drill — a practice
  24. drill — the tool

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