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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 116 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: fan · mug · dip · tube · bass · hand · bark · sharp

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. mug — a face
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. bass — low music
  8. tube — the underground
  9. bark — to shout
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. sharp — clever
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. tube — a container
  15. bass — the fish
  16. mug — a cup
  17. dip — to sink
  18. hand — in cards
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. mug — to rob

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