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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. cue — for pool
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. lie — to recline
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. squash — the sport
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. cue — a hint
  11. cue — a signal
  12. squash — to crush
  13. pound — a weight
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. wind — moving air
  17. bark — to shout
  18. sharp — clever
  19. tube — a container
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. wind — moving air
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. tube — the underground

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