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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.

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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: file · capital · object · stand · bark · fork · net · snap

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. snap — to click
  3. object — a thing
  4. capital — money
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. object — to protest
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. file — a line of people
  11. bark — to shout
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. stand — to bear
  15. net — for catching
  16. net — after costs
  17. file — a tool
  18. object — an aim
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. fork — in a road
  23. capital — a city
  24. file — a document

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