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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 116 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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. court — of a king
  3. club — for golf
  4. court — of law
  5. club — for dancing
  6. ground — a position
  7. dip — to sink
  8. bark — to shout
  9. ground — the earth
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. ground — crushed
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. staff — a stick
  14. court — for sport
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. staff — employees
  17. club — a group
  18. bark — a dog's sound

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