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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. hand — help
  3. hand — in cards
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. shower — to wash
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. craft — a skill
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. game — wild animals
  10. club — a group
  11. club — for dancing
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. craft — boats
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. kid — to tease
  18. game — a match
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. club — for golf
  23. shower — rain
  24. kid — child

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