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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: clip · deal · bank · cell · spring · firm · object · bark

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. cell — a phone
  4. bark — to shout
  5. bank — of a river
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. object — to protest
  8. spring — the season
  9. clip — a video
  10. bank — for money
  11. firm — decided
  12. spring — a coil
  13. cell — in biology
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. firm — a company
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. object — a thing
  18. firm — steady
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. clip — to cut
  21. bank — for money
  22. deal — to handle
  23. object — an aim
  24. spring — of water

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