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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. court — for sport
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. bark — to shout
  5. cue — a signal
  6. craft — a skill
  7. sharp — clever
  8. dip — to sink
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. wound — an injury
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. cue — for pool
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. cue — a hint
  18. court — of a king
  19. craft — boats
  20. foot — a measure
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. court — of law

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