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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. bark — to shout
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. mark — a trace
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. clip — a video
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. clip — to cut
  12. clip — for paper
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. scale — in music
  18. mark — a grade
  19. scale — size or range
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. sharp — clever
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. sharp — with an edge

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