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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: branch · row · pop · kid · pit · game · bark · rest

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. pit — a hole
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. row — a line
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. pop — soda
  7. row — to paddle
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. rest — what's left
  11. bark — to shout
  12. pop — to visit
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. kid — to tease
  16. game — a match
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rest — a break
  19. kid — child
  20. pop — music
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. branch — a division
  24. game — wild animals

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