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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. firm — decided
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. board — to get on
  6. clip — for paper
  7. clip — to cut
  8. net — in sport
  9. firm — steady
  10. clip — a video
  11. board — a committee
  12. game — a match
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. bark — to shout
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. firm — a company
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. net — after costs
  21. wake — a trail
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. game — wild animals

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