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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: staff · roll · bark · chest · wake · nail · shower · present

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. chest — a box
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. roll — a list
  8. staff — employees
  9. present — there
  10. wake — a trail
  11. chest — of your body
  12. bark — to shout
  13. present — the time now
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. shower — to wash
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. staff — employees
  20. chest — of your body
  21. roll — a cake
  22. staff — a stick
  23. shower — rain
  24. nail — on a finger

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