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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. sharp — clever
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. cue — a signal
  6. clip — for paper
  7. cue — for pool
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. stand — to bear
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. clip — a video
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. mine — for digging
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. cue — a hint
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. clip — to cut
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. wake — a trail
  24. sharp — exactly

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