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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. kid — to tease
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. court — for sport
  5. rush — hurry
  6. present — there
  7. last — finally
  8. present — the time now
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. kid — child
  11. season — of the year
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. chair — a leader
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. last — to go on
  16. court — of a king
  17. season — in sport
  18. bark — to shout
  19. court — of law
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. present — a gift
  23. last — final
  24. season — to add flavour

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