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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.

Make a worksheet

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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Word bank
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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: firm · bark · content · net · fork · pass

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. firm — steady
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. content — happy
  6. net — after costs
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. firm — a company
  9. firm — decided
  10. net — for catching
  11. fork — in a road
  12. net — in sport
  13. pass — a permit
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. content — the amount
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. bark — to shout

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