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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: craft · bark · dip · cue · clip · prune · kid · rush

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. prune — to trim
  6. cue — a hint
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. cue — a signal
  9. rush — hurry
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. dip — to sink
  12. kid — child
  13. bark — to shout
  14. clip — to cut
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. cue — for pool
  17. craft — a skill
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. prune — to trim
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. clip — for paper
  22. craft — boats
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. clip — a video

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