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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: saw · last · field · bark · cue · ruler · chest · snap

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. bark — to shout
  4. snap — to click
  5. saw — the tool
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. saw — the tool
  8. field — for sport
  9. cue — a signal
  10. last — final
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. chest — a box
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. chest — of your body
  16. cue — for pool
  17. last — finally
  18. field — farmland
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. last — to go on
  22. field — a subject
  23. chest — of your body
  24. cue — a hint

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