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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. sharp — clever
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. branch — a division
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. deal — to handle
  15. root — of a word
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. root — the cause
  21. root — of a plant
  22. date — the fruit
  23. bark — to shout
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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