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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. present — a gift
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. kid — to tease
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bark — to shout
  8. present — the time now
  9. foot — a measure
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. kid — child
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. rest — a break
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. mark — a trace
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. rest — what's left
  22. rest — what's left
  23. present — there
  24. pitcher — a jug

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