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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
468
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: ball · chair · rock · deal · rash · jam · bark · clip

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. rash — hasty
  4. rash — a series
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. ball — a dance
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. clip — for paper
  11. chair — a leader
  12. clip — a video
  13. bark — to shout
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. rock — music
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. rock — a stone
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. deal — to handle
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. clip — to cut
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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