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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. mark — a grade
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. chair — a leader
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. race — humankind
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. bark — to shout
  12. bass — low music
  13. band — a ring
  14. bass — the fish
  15. mark — a trace
  16. race — a contest
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. race — the arms race
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. band — a music group
  24. mark — to pay attention

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