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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. file — a document
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. file — a tool
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. date — the fruit
  11. foot — a measure
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. court — for sport
  15. court — of law
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. file — a line of people
  20. branch — a division
  21. court — of a king
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — after costs
  24. bark — to shout

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