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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: pit · lash · wound · bark · staff · perch · clip · field

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. field — farmland
  4. wound — an injury
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. staff — employees
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. clip — for paper
  9. field — for sport
  10. clip — a video
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. staff — a stick
  13. pit — a hole
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. pit — in a race
  17. staff — employees
  18. clip — to cut
  19. wound — an injury
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. perch — the fish
  24. field — a subject

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