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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 sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. ground — a position
  5. kid — to tease
  6. stand — to bear
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. cue — for pool
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bass — low music
  13. wound — an injury
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. cue — a signal
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. ground — crushed
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. ground — the earth
  22. cue — a hint
  23. kid — child
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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