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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: cue · tear · kid · hide · bark · patient · pound · rush

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. cue — for pool
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. tear — from crying
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. tear — from crying
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. cue — a signal
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. kid — child
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. tear — to rip
  16. bark — to shout
  17. pound — a weight
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. kid — to tease
  22. cue — a hint
  23. rush — hurry
  24. rush — to hurry

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