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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. fork — in a road
  3. press — a publisher
  4. kid — child
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. kid — to tease
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. press — to push
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. mine — for digging
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. wound — an injury
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. wound — an injury
  17. press — newspapers
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. jam — a tight spot

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