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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: calf · bark · board · prune · hand · jam · field · dip

  1. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. prune — to trim
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. hand — in cards
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. field — for sport
  8. board — to get on
  9. hand — help
  10. field — a subject
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. dip — to sink
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. field — farmland
  18. prune — to trim
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. bark — to shout
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. board — a committee

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