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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bark — to shout
  3. drill — a practice
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. drill — army training
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. lean — thin
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. last — to go on
  14. clip — for paper
  15. lean — to bend
  16. last — final
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. fork — in a road
  20. clip — to cut
  21. clip — a video
  22. drill — the tool
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. last — finally

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