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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: snap · mug · pop · net · arm · spell · scale · bark

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. net — in sport
  3. net — for catching
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. pop — to visit
  6. net — after costs
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. pop — soda
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. mug — a face
  12. pop — music
  13. bark — to shout
  14. spell — letters
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. mug — to rob
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. snap — to click
  19. scale — size or range
  20. scale — in music
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. mug — a cup
  23. spell — magic
  24. spell — a short time

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