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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. clip — to cut
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. clip — for paper
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. prune — to trim
  8. clip — a video
  9. hand — in cards
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. club — for golf
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. prune — to trim
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. tube — a container
  18. object — to protest
  19. object — a thing
  20. bark — to shout
  21. club — for dancing
  22. object — an aim
  23. hand — help
  24. tube — the underground

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