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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  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. safe — out of danger
  2. bear — the animal
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. land — ground
  5. net — in sport
  6. degree — an amount
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bark — to shout
  10. land — a country
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. degree — from a university
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. snap — to click
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. bear — the animal
  17. net — for catching
  18. degree — temperature
  19. land — to come down
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  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