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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. swing — in golf
  6. file — a tool
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. sharp — clever
  9. net — in sport
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. craft — a skill
  12. net — after costs
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. bark — to shout
  15. file — a line of people
  16. net — for catching
  17. can — a tin
  18. swing — music
  19. craft — boats
  20. can — a tin
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. file — a document
  23. can — to be able to
  24. swing — to play on

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