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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. net — for catching
  3. game — a match
  4. chair — a leader
  5. rock — a stone
  6. lean — thin
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. rock — music
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. lean — to bend
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. kid — child
  17. bark — to shout
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. net — after costs
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. game — wild animals
  24. kid — to tease

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