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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
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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: mine · cold · lie · sharp · bark · coach · plane · dip

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. sharp — clever
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. dip — to sink
  14. plane — a tool
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. lie — to recline
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. mine — for digging
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. cold — not warm
  23. cold — an illness
  24. plane — an aircraft

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