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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: bat · cap · pit · bark · key · mate · clip · trunk

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. clip — a video
  3. clip — to cut
  4. mate — to breed
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. mate — a partner
  7. cap — a lid
  8. key — the most important part
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bark — to shout
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bat — the animal
  15. pit — a hole
  16. key — for a lock
  17. mate — a friend
  18. cap — a hat
  19. pit — in a race
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. clip — for paper
  23. key — in music
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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