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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. bass — the fish
  3. row — a line
  4. hand — help
  5. bass — low music
  6. dip — to sink
  7. scale — size or range
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. row — to paddle
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. hand — in cards
  15. scale — in music
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. bulb — for light
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. bark — 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