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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. cap — of ice
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. cap — a hat
  7. bark — to shout
  8. branch — a division
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. squash — to crush
  15. kid — child
  16. cap — a lid
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. kid — to tease
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. squash — the sport
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. branch — of a bank

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