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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. bulb — for light
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. mate — a partner
  6. row — to paddle
  7. stand — to bear
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. bark — to shout
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. row — a line
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. capital — a city
  16. capital — money
  17. mate — to breed
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. mate — a friend
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. stand — for spectators

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