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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.

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: ground · craft · saw · game · wound · land · net · bark

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. bark — to shout
  3. wound — an injury
  4. craft — boats
  5. game — wild animals
  6. craft — a skill
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. net — in sport
  9. ground — the earth
  10. land — a country
  11. game — a match
  12. saw — the tool
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. saw — the tool
  16. ground — a position
  17. land — ground
  18. net — after costs
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. ground — crushed
  22. net — for catching
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. craft — a handicraft

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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