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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: game · branch · sharp · jam · bark · hand · cabinet · object

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. hand — help
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. bark — to shout
  5. game — wild animals
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. sharp — clever
  9. game — a match
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. object — to protest
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. branch — a division
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. object — a thing
  21. hand — in cards
  22. object — an aim
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. branch — of a tree

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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