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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: nail · bark · bat · stick · dip · clip

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — a video
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. dip — to sink
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. clip — for paper
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. bat — the animal
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. nail — for a hammer

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