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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. mate — to breed
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. clip — a video
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. cue — a signal
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. cue — a hint
  12. clip — for paper
  13. rash — hasty
  14. rash — a series
  15. mate — a friend
  16. content — the amount
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. mate — a partner
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. content — happy
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. clip — to cut
  23. perch — the fish
  24. cue — for pool

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