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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. face — part of the head
  4. face — to point toward
  5. clip — to cut
  6. face — to confront
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. mug — to rob
  9. track — a path
  10. bark — to shout
  11. clip — a video
  12. mug — a face
  13. track — a song
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. mug — a cup
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. squash — to crush
  20. squash — the sport
  21. track — to keep track
  22. clip — for paper
  23. sharp — clever
  24. patient — a sick person

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