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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. lean — thin
  3. clip — for paper
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. clip — to cut
  6. key — the most important part
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. key — for a lock
  9. mark — a grade
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. lean — to bend
  13. mark — a trace
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. sharp — clever
  16. game — wild animals
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. deal — to handle
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. game — a match
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. clip — a video
  24. key — in music

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