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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 116 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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. wound — an injury
  3. swing — music
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. swing — to play on
  6. cue — a hint
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. cue — for pool
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. wake — a trail
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. wound — an injury
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. swing — in golf
  16. drill — a practice
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. tube — a container
  20. drill — army training
  21. tube — the underground
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. drill — the tool
  24. bark — to shout

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