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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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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: staff · ball · chest · bark · sharp · rock · last · ground

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. last — finally
  3. staff — employees
  4. last — to go on
  5. ground — the earth
  6. sharp — clever
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. ground — a position
  9. staff — employees
  10. chest — of your body
  11. ball — a dance
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. staff — a stick
  14. chest — a box
  15. rock — music
  16. last — final
  17. ball — a great time
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. ground — crushed
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. chest — of your body
  23. rock — a stone
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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