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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. fall — the season
  3. drill — the tool
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. drill — army training
  8. net — after costs
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. court — for sport
  11. drill — a practice
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. fall — to drop
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. fall — to drop
  16. net — in sport
  17. court — of law
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. bark — to shout
  21. court — of a king
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. pound — a weight

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