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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. mug — a face
  4. net — for catching
  5. ground — crushed
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. mug — a cup
  8. game — wild animals
  9. mug — to rob
  10. net — after costs
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. ground — a position
  13. game — a match
  14. row — a line
  15. row — to paddle
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. net — in sport
  20. wake — a trail
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. snap — to click
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. bark — to shout

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