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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. sharp — clever
  4. stock — shares
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. chair — a leader
  9. stock — goods
  10. land — ground
  11. court — of a king
  12. ground — the earth
  13. court — of law
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. land — to come down
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. bark — to shout
  18. court — for sport
  19. object — to protest
  20. ground — crushed
  21. ground — a position
  22. land — a country
  23. object — an aim
  24. sharp — exactly

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