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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: wind · rule · hide · bark · deal · trunk · pitch · mark

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. wind — moving air
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. rule — a law
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. wind — moving air
  11. deal — to handle
  12. mark — a grade
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. mark — a trace
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. bark — to shout
  23. rule — government
  24. pitch — completely

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