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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 120 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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. bark — to shout
  3. pop — to visit
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. wake — a trail
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. clip — to cut
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. stand — to bear
  10. key — for a lock
  11. clip — for paper
  12. key — the most important part
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. pop — soda
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. key — in music
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. clip — a video
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. trunk — of a tree

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