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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 116 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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. game — a match
  3. cue — for pool
  4. mark — a trace
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. cue — a hint
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. row — a line
  9. hand — help
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. staff — employees
  13. cue — a signal
  14. row — to paddle
  15. staff — employees
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. wax — to grow
  19. mark — a grade
  20. staff — a stick
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — wild animals
  23. hand — in cards
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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