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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 112 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wound · mark · root · bark · hide · fine · mouse · pitcher

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. fine — high quality
  3. wound — an injury
  4. fine — all right
  5. root — of a plant
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. root — of a word
  14. root — the cause
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. mark — a trace
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. wound — an injury
  24. mark — a grade

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