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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bear — the animal
  4. staff — a stick
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. march — the month
  7. staff — employees
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. march — the month
  10. row — to paddle
  11. bear — the animal
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. rash — a series
  14. rash — hasty
  15. staff — employees
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. march — music
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bark — to shout
  24. row — a line

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