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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: bark · chip · race · rash · deal · kid · cue · content

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. rash — hasty
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. content — the amount
  5. kid — child
  6. race — the arms race
  7. chip — for betting
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. bark — to shout
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. cue — for pool
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. content — happy
  15. race — humankind
  16. kid — to tease
  17. rash — a series
  18. deal — to handle
  19. chip — to eat
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. cue — a hint
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. cue — a signal
  24. race — a contest

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