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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: bark · net · game · chair · spell · jam · mug · squash

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. spell — letters
  4. game — wild animals
  5. net — after costs
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. mug — to rob
  8. chair — a leader
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. game — a match
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. spell — magic
  15. mug — a cup
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. net — for catching
  18. mug — a face
  19. net — in sport
  20. spell — a short time
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. squash — to crush
  23. squash — the sport
  24. bark — to shout

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