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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: cold · firm · club · lean · dip · bark · track · plane

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  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. dip — a sauce
  2. lean — to bend
  3. track — to keep track
  4. club — for dancing
  5. dip — to sink
  6. club — for golf
  7. firm — a company
  8. bark — to shout
  9. club — a group
  10. cold — not warm
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. firm — decided
  13. lean — thin
  14. track — a path
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. firm — steady
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. cold — an illness
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. track — a song
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. plane — a tool
  23. lean — to rest against
  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