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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: bark · rash · bat · cue · wound · dip · calf · stock

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. cue — for pool
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. wound — an injury
  12. cue — a hint
  13. stock — goods
  14. rash — a series
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. stock — shares
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. dip — to sink
  23. cue — a signal
  24. dip — a sauce

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