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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. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. bark — to shout
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. bound — certain
  5. roll — a list
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. cue — for pool
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. roll — a cake
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bound — obliged
  13. cue — a hint
  14. bound — tied together
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. clip — to cut
  18. mine — for digging
  19. clip — a video
  20. cue — a signal
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — an injury
  24. clip — for paper

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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