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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. hand — in cards
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. bear — the animal
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. court — of a king
  8. stock — shares
  9. court — for sport
  10. bear — the animal
  11. hand — help
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. rest — what's left
  14. chip — to eat
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. bark — to shout
  17. court — of law
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. chip — for betting
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. rest — what's left
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. stock — goods
  24. pitcher — a jug

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