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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  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. mine — for digging
  3. charge — electricity
  4. track — a song
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. clip — for paper
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. charge — a price
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. clip — a video
  13. deal — to handle
  14. charge — in control
  15. clip — to cut
  16. cue — a signal
  17. track — a path
  18. track — to keep track
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. cue — a hint
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. mine — belonging to me
  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