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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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. suit — in cards
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. snap — to click
  5. suit — clothes
  6. tear — to rip
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. tear — from crying
  11. hand — help
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. tear — from crying
  18. bark — to shout
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. suit — to fit
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. date — the fruit
  23. pit — a hole
  24. bark — 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