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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. last — to go on
  5. charge — a price
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. charge — electricity
  8. last — final
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. charge — in control
  14. court — of law
  15. stand — to bear
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. court — for sport
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. bark — to shout
  21. date — the fruit
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. court — of a king
  24. last — finally

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