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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 sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. wind — moving air
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. band — a music group
  9. scale — size or range
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. hand — in cards
  12. hand — help
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. wake — a trail
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. scale — in music
  18. band — a ring
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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