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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  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. chip — to eat
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. tube — the underground
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. content — happy
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. track — to keep track
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. track — a song
  15. tube — a container
  16. bark — to shout
  17. chip — for betting
  18. track — a path
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. content — the amount
  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