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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 120 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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. net — for catching
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. fall — to drop
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. fall — to drop
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. fall — the season
  12. branch — a division
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. saw — the tool
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. net — in sport
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. net — after costs
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. bark — to shout

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