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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. court — of law
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. branch — a division
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. wound — an injury
  12. tube — a container
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. bark — to shout
  15. wound — an injury
  16. cap — a lid
  17. cap — of ice
  18. cap — a hat
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. court — for sport
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. court — of a king

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