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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. foot — a measure
  3. cell — in biology
  4. capital — money
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. capital — a city
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. chair — a leader
  11. rest — what's left
  12. bark — to shout
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. rock — a stone
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. snap — to click
  18. rest — what's left
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. rest — a break
  21. cell — a phone
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. rock — music
  24. cell — in a prison

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