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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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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: rash · prune · bark · bay · saw · cell · racket · fork

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. rash — a series
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. rash — hasty
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — the tool
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. cell — a phone
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. fork — in a road
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. prune — to trim
  22. bark — to shout
  23. cell — in biology
  24. prune — to trim

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