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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. stock — shares
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. last — final
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. bark — to shout
  8. last — finally
  9. wake — a trail
  10. drill — the tool
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. clip — to cut
  13. stock — goods
  14. clip — for paper
  15. last — to go on
  16. mark — a grade
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. drill — a practice
  19. drill — army training
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. clip — a video
  24. racket — for tennis

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