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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. cold — not warm
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. plane — a tool
  5. bark — to shout
  6. ball — a great time
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. bank — for money
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. ground — the earth
  12. bank — of a river
  13. cold — an illness
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. ground — a position
  17. ground — crushed
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. ball — a dance
  22. chair — a leader
  23. bank — for money
  24. cold — the Cold War

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