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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 120 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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. clip — for paper
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. spring — a coil
  7. lie — to recline
  8. cue — for pool
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. foot — a measure
  12. spring — the season
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — to cut
  15. rock — music
  16. cue — a hint
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. spring — of water
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. rock — a stone
  22. bark — to shout
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. bark — of a tree

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