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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. net — in sport
  3. net — after costs
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. wound — an injury
  6. squash — the sport
  7. staff — employees
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. bass — low music
  10. squash — to crush
  11. bark — to shout
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. net — for catching
  14. staff — employees
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. rash — hasty
  18. staff — a stick
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. wound — an injury
  21. rash — a series
  22. bass — the fish
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. bass — the instrument

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