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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. tear — from crying
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. cell — in biology
  5. board — a committee
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. cue — a hint
  9. cue — for pool
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bulb — for light
  12. clip — a video
  13. tear — from crying
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. cell — a phone
  17. mine — for digging
  18. clip — to cut
  19. tear — to rip
  20. cue — a signal
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. clip — for paper
  23. bark — to shout
  24. board — to get on

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