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

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. bound — tied together
  3. net — in sport
  4. ground — a position
  5. net — for catching
  6. bound — obliged
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. ground — crushed
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. bark — to shout
  14. pit — in a race
  15. bound — certain
  16. pit — a hole
  17. ground — the earth
  18. net — after costs

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