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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. clip — for paper
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. board — a committee
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. bark — to shout
  7. ground — crushed
  8. clip — to cut
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. content — happy
  12. ground — a position
  13. content — the amount
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. clip — a video
  21. board — to get on
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. bat — the animal
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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