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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: bark · present · hide · cell · trunk · clip

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. cell — in biology
  3. cell — a phone
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. present — the time now
  7. clip — a video
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. clip — for paper
  14. bark — to shout
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. clip — to cut
  17. present — a gift
  18. bark — a dog's sound

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