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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. game — a match
  6. stand — to bear
  7. bark — to shout
  8. branch — a division
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. game — wild animals
  11. spell — magic
  12. spell — letters
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. spell — a short time
  19. mine — for digging
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. mark — a trace
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. mark — to pay attention

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