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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bark · fork · craft · mate · pitch · chair

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. mate — to breed
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. mate — a friend
  5. craft — boats
  6. mate — a partner
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. pitch — completely
  9. chair — a leader
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. bark — to shout
  12. fork — in a road
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. craft — a skill
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. fork — to eat with

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