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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. court — of law
  3. court — for sport
  4. bark — to shout
  5. tube — the underground
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. tube — a container
  11. scale — size or range
  12. mark — a grade
  13. wake — a trail
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. stock — shares
  17. court — of a king
  18. scale — in music
  19. stock — goods
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. deal — to handle
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. mark — a trace

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