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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 116 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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. net — for catching
  6. object — to protest
  7. rash — hasty
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. net — after costs
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. row — to paddle
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. rash — a series
  15. wound — an injury
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. object — an aim
  18. bat — the animal
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. wound — an injury
  21. object — a thing
  22. row — a line
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. net — in sport

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