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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: firm · clip · drill · stick · bark · content · squash · saw

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. firm — a company
  3. bark — to shout
  4. drill — the tool
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. drill — a practice
  7. clip — a video
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. firm — steady
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. saw — the tool
  13. clip — to cut
  14. saw — the tool
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. content — happy
  17. content — the amount
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. firm — decided
  21. squash — the sport
  22. clip — for paper
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. drill — army training

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