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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. object — a thing
  3. object — an aim
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. bass — the fish
  7. stock — goods
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. bark — to shout
  11. object — to protest
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. wound — an injury
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. bass — low music
  19. rush — hurry
  20. pound — a weight
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. stock — shares
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. pound — for dogs

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