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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 120 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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. band — a music group
  3. band — a ring
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. fine — all right
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. row — to paddle
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. pit — a hole
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. hand — help
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. bark — to shout
  22. hand — in cards
  23. pit — in a race
  24. fine — high quality

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