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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: pitcher · bark · row · spell · wave · leaves · last · spring

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. spring — a coil
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. row — to paddle
  5. spell — a short time
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. spell — magic
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. last — final
  12. spring — the season
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. spell — letters
  18. last — finally
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bark — to shout
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. spring — of water
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  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