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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: race · nail · bark · straw · hide · snap · ball · lie

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. snap — to click
  4. bark — to shout
  5. lie — to recline
  6. ball — a great time
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. ball — a dance
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. race — humankind
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. race — the arms race
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. race — a contest
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. nail — for a hammer

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