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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: date · spell · court · chair · bark · sharp · pitch · pop

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. court — of a king
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. pop — to visit
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. date — the fruit
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. pop — music
  11. sharp — clever
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. court — for sport
  14. spell — a short time
  15. spell — magic
  16. pop — soda
  17. bark — to shout
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. court — of law
  20. spell — letters
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. pitch — completely
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. chair — a leader

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