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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. chair — a leader
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. staff — a stick
  7. suit — in cards
  8. spring — of water
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. spring — a coil
  12. staff — employees
  13. fork — in a road
  14. suit — clothes
  15. suit — to fit
  16. mark — a trace
  17. spring — the season
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. mark — a grade
  20. tube — a container
  21. staff — employees
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. tube — the underground
  24. chair — to sit on

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