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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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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: cue · bark · net · hand · drill · spring · clip · safe

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. spring — the season
  3. hand — in cards
  4. net — for catching
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. clip — for paper
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. cue — a signal
  9. clip — to cut
  10. net — after costs
  11. cue — a hint
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. drill — the tool
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. drill — a practice
  17. spring — of water
  18. hand — help
  19. bark — to shout
  20. clip — a video
  21. spring — a coil
  22. cue — for pool
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. net — in sport

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