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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. bark — to shout
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. scale — in music
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. chest — a box
  10. can — a tin
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — after costs
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. scale — size or range
  16. chest — of your body
  17. can — a tin
  18. can — to be able to
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. chest — of your body
  21. prune — to trim
  22. prune — to trim
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. net — for catching

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