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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. net — for catching
  4. branch — a division
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. bark — to shout
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. net — after costs
  13. lean — to bend
  14. lean — thin
  15. row — to paddle
  16. row — a line
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. net — in sport
  22. date — the fruit
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. lean — to rest against

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