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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. drill — army training
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. race — a contest
  6. cue — a signal
  7. clip — a video
  8. race — the arms race
  9. drill — a practice
  10. drill — the tool
  11. cue — a hint
  12. clip — to cut
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. bark — to shout
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. cue — for pool
  20. perch — the fish
  21. race — humankind
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. clip — for paper
  24. wind — moving air

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