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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: last · board · bark · chest · mug · spell · staff · row

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. staff — employees
  3. spell — a short time
  4. last — finally
  5. spell — magic
  6. last — final
  7. mug — to rob
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. board — a committee
  10. chest — of your body
  11. mug — a cup
  12. chest — of your body
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. row — a line
  16. bark — to shout
  17. row — to paddle
  18. mug — a face
  19. staff — a stick
  20. chest — a box
  21. board — to get on
  22. spell — letters
  23. staff — employees
  24. last — to go on

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