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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. row — a line
  4. bank — for money
  5. pit — in a race
  6. bark — to shout
  7. scale — in music
  8. scale — size or range
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. net — in sport
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. wind — moving air
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. bank — for money
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. bank — of a river
  21. pit — a hole
  22. row — to paddle
  23. net — after costs
  24. wind — moving air

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