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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. hand — help
  3. court — for sport
  4. bark — to shout
  5. hand — in cards
  6. tube — the underground
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bound — certain
  9. craft — boats
  10. court — of a king
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bound — tied together
  14. bound — obliged
  15. squash — the sport
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. squash — to crush
  19. craft — a skill
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. court — of law
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. tube — a container

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