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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 116 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 sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. net — after costs
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. swing — music
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. prune — to trim
  9. swing — to play on
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. swing — in golf
  13. prune — to trim
  14. stock — shares
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. board — to get on
  19. net — in sport
  20. net — for catching
  21. stock — goods
  22. wake — a trail
  23. board — a committee
  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