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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. bat — the animal
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. cold — not warm
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. deal — to handle
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. bark — to shout
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. chair — a leader
  20. pitch — completely
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. deal — an agreement

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