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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. firm — decided
  3. capital — a city
  4. fork — in a road
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. rest — a break
  9. bat — the animal
  10. firm — a company
  11. capital — money
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. rest — what's left
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. bark — to shout
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. prune — to trim
  22. wake — a trail
  23. rest — what's left
  24. prune — to trim

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