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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. wound — an injury
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. club — for golf
  7. club — a group
  8. cell — in biology
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. wound — an injury
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. kid — to tease
  14. club — for dancing
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. bark — to shout
  18. wake — a trail
  19. plane — a tool
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. cell — a phone
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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