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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: kid · racket · wake · clip · rest · bark · squash · rock

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. rest — what's left
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. squash — the sport
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. kid — child
  8. squash — to crush
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. rest — a break
  13. clip — to cut
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. rock — a stone
  16. kid — to tease
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. wake — a trail
  19. rest — what's left
  20. clip — for paper
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. rock — music
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. bark — to shout

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