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

Word bank: mate · mug · wind · bark · clip · cell

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. cell — in biology
  3. clip — to cut
  4. mate — to breed
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — moving air
  7. mate — a partner
  8. mug — a cup
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. mate — a friend
  12. mug — a face
  13. mug — to rob
  14. bark — to shout
  15. cell — a phone
  16. clip — a video
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. clip — for paper

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