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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. pop — to visit
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. branch — a division
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. spring — a coil
  8. saw — the tool
  9. staff — a stick
  10. net — in sport
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. net — after costs
  13. bark — to shout
  14. saw — the tool
  15. staff — employees
  16. fork — in a road
  17. spring — the season
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. staff — employees
  20. pop — music
  21. pop — soda
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. spring — of water

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