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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. saw — the tool
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. rush — hurry
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. board — to get on
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. face — to point toward
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. face — to confront
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. saw — the tool
  21. face — part of the head
  22. bark — to shout
  23. board — a committee
  24. board — a flat piece

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