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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. firm — decided
  3. clip — to cut
  4. firm — a company
  5. lean — to bend
  6. foot — a measure
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. content — happy
  9. clip — for paper
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. bark — to shout
  13. lean — thin
  14. clip — a video
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. firm — steady
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. mate — a friend
  19. mate — a partner
  20. content — the amount
  21. mate — to breed
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. wave — with your hand

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