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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: cue · bark · object · net · bound · nail

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. object — to protest
  3. bound — obliged
  4. object — an aim
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. cue — a signal
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bound — certain
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. bound — tied together
  12. net — in sport
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. cue — for pool
  15. bark — to shout
  16. object — a thing
  17. net — for catching
  18. cue — a hint

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