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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. mug — to rob
  4. cold — an illness
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. can — a tin
  7. mug — a face
  8. net — for catching
  9. club — for dancing
  10. chair — a leader
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. net — after costs
  13. club — a group
  14. degree — from a university
  15. club — for golf
  16. degree — an amount
  17. degree — temperature
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. net — in sport
  20. can — a tin
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. can — to be able to
  24. mug — a cup

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