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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.

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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. band — a ring
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. bark — to shout
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. bore — to tire
  13. band — a music group
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. wake — a trail

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