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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 116 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.

Make a worksheet

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 · last · bear · fan · prune · chair · mark · bark

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. prune — to trim
  3. last — final
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. chair — a leader
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. last — to go on
  8. last — finally
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. bark — to shout
  12. row — to paddle
  13. mark — a grade
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bear — the animal
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. row — a line
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. mark — a trace
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. bark — of a tree

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