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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 water is too ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. track — a path
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. foot — a measure
  5. stand — to bear
  6. press — newspapers
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. track — a song
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. cold — an illness
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. press — to push
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. swing — music
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. swing — to play on
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. swing — in golf
  21. bark — to shout
  22. track — to keep track
  23. fork — in a road
  24. press — a publisher

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