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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. net — after costs
  6. bass — low music
  7. wake — a trail
  8. object — a thing
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. object — an aim
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. stem — to come from
  18. net — in sport
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. bass — the fish
  24. net — for catching

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