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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 116 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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. net — in sport
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. wind — moving air
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. pound — a weight
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. wind — moving air
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. bark — to shout
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. kid — child
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. net — after costs
  19. lie — to recline
  20. fork — in a road
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. kid — to tease
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. net — for catching

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