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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 120 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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. court — of law
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. clip — to cut
  9. court — for sport
  10. clip — for paper
  11. court — of a king
  12. stand — to bear
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. fork — in a road
  15. scale — size or range
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. scale — in music
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. bark — to shout
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. current — electric
  22. current — of water
  23. current — happening now
  24. clip — a video

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