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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. net — after costs
  3. roll — a list
  4. fine — all right
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. net — for catching
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. net — in sport
  10. bark — to shout
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. row — a line
  13. fine — high quality
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. bear — the animal
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. wake — a trail
  18. row — to paddle
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. roll — a cake
  21. bear — the animal
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. row — a quarrel

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