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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. chip — to eat
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. row — a line
  5. clip — for paper
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. game — a match
  8. game — wild animals
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. clip — to cut
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. press — to push
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. press — a publisher
  18. press — newspapers
  19. clip — a video
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. row — to paddle
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. chip — for betting

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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