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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. chair — a leader
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. wound — an injury
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. bark — to shout
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. dip — to sink
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. sharp — clever
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. wound — an injury
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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