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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. bulb — for light
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. spring — the season
  6. dip — to sink
  7. spring — of water
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. chair — a leader
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. spring — a coil
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. bark — to shout
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. sharp — clever
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. bulb — for light
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. calf — of the leg

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