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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. prune — to trim
  5. rest — a break
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. spring — the season
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. spring — of water
  10. bark — to shout
  11. deal — to handle
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. lie — to recline
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. prune — to trim
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. rest — what's left
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. rest — what's left
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. spring — a coil

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