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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: key · sharp · board · tear · bark · clip · trunk · nail

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. clip — to cut
  3. clip — a video
  4. key — for a lock
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. tear — to rip
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. board — to get on
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. clip — for paper
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. tear — from crying
  18. key — in music
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. bark — to shout
  21. board — a committee
  22. tear — from crying
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. sharp — clever

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