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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 120 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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. wind — moving air
  7. net — in sport
  8. scale — size or range
  9. net — after costs
  10. ball — a great time
  11. bear — the animal
  12. wind — moving air
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. net — for catching
  15. ball — a dance
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. bark — to shout
  19. scale — in music
  20. stock — shares
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. stock — goods
  24. bark — a dog's sound

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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