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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: bay · ground · degree · stick · sharp · bass · bark · snap

  1. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  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. bay — a part of the sea
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. bass — the fish
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. ground — the earth
  8. sharp — clever
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. degree — an amount
  11. ground — crushed
  12. snap — to click
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. ground — a position
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. degree — temperature
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. degree — from a university
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. bass — low music
  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