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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. degree — an amount
  4. suit — clothes
  5. sharp — clever
  6. lie — to recline
  7. degree — from a university
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. bark — to shout
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. branch — a division
  12. craft — boats
  13. degree — temperature
  14. ground — crushed
  15. ground — the earth
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. suit — in cards
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. ground — a position
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. craft — a skill

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