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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: cabinet · ball · mine · net · bark · cold · hide · scale

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. bark — to shout
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. ball — a dance
  8. scale — size or range
  9. ball — a great time
  10. net — for catching
  11. cold — an illness
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. mine — for digging
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. scale — in music
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. net — in sport
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. net — after costs
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. hide — to keep secret

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