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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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  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. pitch — completely
  2. chip — to eat
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. court — for sport
  7. court — of a king
  8. chip — for betting
  9. charge — a price
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. prune — to trim
  13. charge — in control
  14. bark — to shout
  15. file — a line of people
  16. charge — electricity
  17. prune — to trim
  18. mark — a grade
  19. mark — a trace
  20. file — a tool
  21. file — a document
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  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