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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. file — a line of people
  3. rush — hurry
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. file — a tool
  10. clip — a video
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. bark — to shout
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. clip — for paper
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. chair — a leader
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. file — a document
  20. mark — a grade
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. mark — a trace
  23. clip — to cut
  24. hide — to keep secret

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