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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. craft — boats
  4. prune — to trim
  5. bark — to shout
  6. sharp — clever
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. kid — to tease
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. kid — child
  11. prune — to trim
  12. face — to confront
  13. lean — to bend
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. craft — a skill
  17. lean — thin
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. face — to point toward
  20. face — part of the head
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. craft — a handicraft

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