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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 116 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: mouse · fall · fork · hand · wind · hide · swing · bark

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. hand — help
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. wind — moving air
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. swing — in golf
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. fall — to drop
  15. wind — moving air
  16. fall — the season
  17. fork — in a road
  18. swing — to play on
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. fall — to drop
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. swing — music
  23. bark — to shout
  24. hand — in cards

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