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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. content — happy
  4. swing — to play on
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. bark — to shout
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. charge — in control
  11. charge — electricity
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. swing — music
  16. hand — help
  17. wound — an injury
  18. content — the amount
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. fork — in a road
  22. swing — in golf
  23. wound — an injury
  24. hand — in cards

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