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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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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: patient · dip · bark · object · file · kid · snap · roll

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. object — an aim
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. snap — to click
  6. dip — to sink
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. roll — a cake
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. object — to protest
  11. object — a thing
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. roll — a list
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. kid — child
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. bark — to shout
  20. file — a tool
  21. file — a document
  22. kid — to tease
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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