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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 116 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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  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. rash — a series
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rash — hasty
  5. net — after costs
  6. bass — the fish
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. bark — to shout
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. board — to get on
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. rush — hurry
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. net — in sport
  17. kid — child
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. sharp — clever
  21. bass — low music
  22. kid — to tease
  23. net — for catching
  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