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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. sharp — clever
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. snap — to click
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. mine — for digging
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. bark — to shout
  18. sharp — with an edge

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