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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. staff — employees
  3. net — for catching
  4. net — in sport
  5. bark — to shout
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. spell — magic
  8. staff — a stick
  9. spell — a short time
  10. root — the cause
  11. root — of a plant
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. row — a line
  14. chip — to eat
  15. root — of a word
  16. staff — employees
  17. net — after costs
  18. chip — for betting
  19. spell — letters
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. row — to paddle

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