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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  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. bark — of a tree
  2. net — after costs
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. hand — help
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. net — for catching
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. staff — employees
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. rush — hurry
  15. toast — bread
  16. staff — a stick
  17. hand — in cards
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. staff — employees
  22. net — in sport
  23. pitcher — a jug
  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