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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. bark — to shout
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. ground — crushed
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. net — in sport
  7. ground — a position
  8. mark — a trace
  9. court — of law
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. net — for catching
  13. net — after costs
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. mark — a grade
  17. court — for sport
  18. cell — in biology
  19. ground — the earth
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. rush — hurry
  22. court — of a king
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. cell — a phone

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