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

Word bank: bark · dip · tear · march · mouse · present · wind · prune

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. present — the time now
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. prune — to trim
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. bark — to shout
  8. present — a gift
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. tear — from crying
  11. present — there
  12. wind — moving air
  13. tear — to rip
  14. prune — to trim
  15. march — the month
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. march — music
  19. wind — moving air
  20. march — the month
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. tear — from crying
  24. dip — to sink

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