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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. stock — goods
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. sharp — clever
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. mark — a trace
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. bat — the animal
  10. mark — a grade
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. pound — a weight
  19. stock — shares
  20. rest — what's left
  21. plane — a tool
  22. bark — to shout
  23. rest — what's left
  24. stock — a soup base

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