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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. stand — to bear
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. rule — government
  8. hand — help
  9. board — to get on
  10. hand — in cards
  11. pop — to visit
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. sharp — clever
  14. pop — soda
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. pop — music
  18. bark — to shout
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. rule — a law
  24. board — a committee

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