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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. clip — for paper
  5. clip — a video
  6. ball — a great time
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. staff — employees
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. ball — a dance
  13. staff — employees
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fork — in a road
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. craft — boats
  20. fall — the season
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. craft — a skill
  24. clip — to cut

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