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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 120 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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. cap — a lid
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. bark — to shout
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. ground — a position
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. chair — a leader
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. cap — a hat
  14. ground — the earth
  15. net — in sport
  16. prune — to trim
  17. prune — to trim
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. net — for catching
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cap — of ice
  23. ground — crushed
  24. net — after costs

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