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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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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: key · tube · cold · bark · dip · row · mark · foot

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. key — in music
  3. row — to paddle
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. key — the most important part
  8. tube — the underground
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. mark — a trace
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. row — a line
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. cold — not warm
  18. key — for a lock
  19. bark — to shout
  20. foot — a measure
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. mark — a grade
  23. tube — a container
  24. dip — to sink

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