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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 sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. saw — the tool
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. ground — the earth
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. ball — a great time
  14. deal — to handle
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. ground — crushed
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. capital — money
  20. capital — a city
  21. saw — the tool
  22. ball — a dance
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. ground — a position

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