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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: safe · cell · mine · bark · season · deal · lean · cabinet

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. bark — to shout
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. season — of the year
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. deal — to handle
  9. lean — thin
  10. cell — in biology
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. lean — to bend
  20. season — in sport
  21. mine — for digging
  22. cell — a phone
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — ministers

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