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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. hand — in cards
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. last — to go on
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. last — final
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — for catching
  13. ground — a position
  14. hand — help
  15. file — a line of people
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bark — to shout
  18. file — a tool
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. ground — crushed
  21. net — after costs
  22. last — finally
  23. ground — the earth
  24. file — a document

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