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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. current — happening now
  4. current — of water
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. plane — a tool
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. present — a gift
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. present — there
  12. current — electric
  13. scale — in music
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. court — of law
  16. court — of a king
  17. sharp — clever
  18. dip — to sink
  19. scale — size or range
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. bark — to shout
  22. present — the time now
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. bark — of a tree

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