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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: row · hand · bear · scale · rash · bark · suit · pitcher

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. bark — to shout
  4. rash — a series
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — in cards
  7. rash — hasty
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. scale — size or range
  11. suit — clothes
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. suit — in cards
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. scale — in music
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. row — to paddle
  22. suit — to fit
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. bear — the animal

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