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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 120 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: trunk · clip · bark · temple · wave · file · mate · dip

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. file — a document
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. clip — for paper
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. clip — to cut
  13. bark — to shout
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. file — a line of people
  19. mate — to breed
  20. mate — a partner
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. file — a tool
  23. clip — a video
  24. dip — to sink

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