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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. ground — crushed
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. bark — to shout
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. court — of law
  10. ground — the earth
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. ground — a position
  14. rash — a series
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. court — for sport
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. court — of a king

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