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

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chest — a box
  5. drill — a practice
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bark — to shout
  10. drill — army training
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. chest — of your body
  14. drill — the tool
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. rash — a series

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