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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. present — the time now
  5. dip — to sink
  6. court — of a king
  7. game — wild animals
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. court — of law
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. spell — magic
  13. spell — a short time
  14. present — a gift
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. present — there
  20. game — a match
  21. spell — letters
  22. bark — to shout
  23. court — for sport
  24. bowl — a football final

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