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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. suit — to fit
  3. bark — to shout
  4. suit — in cards
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. object — a thing
  7. net — in sport
  8. suit — clothes
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. object — an aim
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. wound — an injury
  16. pitch — completely
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. net — for catching
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. date — the fruit
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. wound — an injury
  24. net — after costs

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