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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. cue — a signal
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. clip — for paper
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. bark — to shout
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. rash — hasty
  10. clip — a video
  11. cue — a hint
  12. last — finally
  13. last — to go on
  14. clip — to cut
  15. rash — a series
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. rush — hurry
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. last — final
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. cue — for pool
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. rush — a thrill

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