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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. rash — a series
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. ground — a position
  6. cell — in biology
  7. prune — to trim
  8. rash — hasty
  9. pop — soda
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. net — for catching
  12. cell — a phone
  13. net — in sport
  14. bark — to shout
  15. ground — crushed
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. prune — to trim
  18. stand — to bear
  19. pop — to visit
  20. net — after costs
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. pop — music
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. ground — the earth

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