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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: season · saw · leaves · rule · object · plane · row · bark

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. object — to protest
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. season — in sport
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bark — to shout
  9. rule — government
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. season — of the year
  12. object — an aim
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. row — to paddle
  15. rule — a law
  16. object — a thing
  17. row — a line
  18. saw — the tool
  19. plane — a tool
  20. saw — the tool
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. leaves — of a tree

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