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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. chest — a box
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. deal — to handle
  6. chest — of your body
  7. clip — for paper
  8. clip — to cut
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. dip — to sink
  11. bark — to shout
  12. ball — a great time
  13. ground — a position
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. ground — crushed
  19. ball — a dance
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. chest — of your body
  22. clip — a video
  23. ground — the earth
  24. dip — to dunk

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