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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 120 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: content · bark · mate · rush · court · leaves · bass · kick

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. kick — in football
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. mate — a partner
  9. mate — to breed
  10. rush — hurry
  11. content — the amount
  12. content — happy
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. bark — to shout
  15. bass — low music
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. bass — the fish
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. court — of a king
  22. court — for sport
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. court — of law

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