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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. chest — a box
  4. can — a tin
  5. snap — to click
  6. hand — help
  7. chest — of your body
  8. cue — a signal
  9. cue — for pool
  10. bark — to shout
  11. net — after costs
  12. can — a tin
  13. net — in sport
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. chest — of your body
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. can — to be able to
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. cue — a hint
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. net — for catching
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. hand — in cards
  24. bark — of a tree

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