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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. mark — a grade
  3. pound — a weight
  4. wound — an injury
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. chair — a leader
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. wound — an injury
  11. court — of a king
  12. bark — to shout
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. can — a tin
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. court — for sport
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. mark — a trace
  22. can — a tin
  23. can — to be able to
  24. court — of law

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