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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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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: clip · fork · rush · row · deal · dip · bark · wake

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. bark — to shout
  3. clip — a video
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. row — to paddle
  6. clip — to cut
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. dip — to sink
  9. clip — for paper
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. wake — a trail
  13. rush — hurry
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. deal — to handle
  17. row — a line
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. fork — in a road
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. deal — an agreement

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