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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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. ball — a great time
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. bore — to tire
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. chair — a leader
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. bore — to drill
  14. bark — to shout
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. content — the amount
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. content — happy
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. bore — gave birth

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