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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. key — the most important part
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. bat — the animal
  7. net — for catching
  8. rash — hasty
  9. bark — to shout
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. key — in music
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. spell — a short time
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. spell — magic
  16. spell — letters
  17. key — for a lock
  18. rash — a series
  19. net — after costs
  20. net — in sport
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. pound — a weight
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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