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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. dip — to sink
  6. bear — the animal
  7. mark — a trace
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. mark — a grade
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. rash — a series
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. sharp — clever
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. bark — to shout
  24. bear — the animal

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