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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. clip — a video
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. staff — employees
  6. staff — a stick
  7. cue — for pool
  8. court — of a king
  9. clip — for paper
  10. bark — to shout
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. prune — to trim
  13. cue — a signal
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. stock — goods
  16. stock — shares
  17. prune — to trim
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. staff — employees
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. court — of law
  22. clip — to cut
  23. cue — a hint
  24. court — for sport

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