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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. lean — thin
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. sharp — clever
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. track — to keep track
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. capital — money
  13. capital — a city
  14. plane — a tool
  15. foot — a measure
  16. lean — to bend
  17. chair — a leader
  18. bark — to shout
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. track — a path
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. track — a song

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