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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: bark · club · kid · drill · arm · wind · cue · stock

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. drill — a practice
  3. kid — child
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. drill — the tool
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. kid — to tease
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. stock — shares
  11. stock — goods
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. cue — a hint
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. club — for dancing
  18. cue — for pool
  19. wind — moving air
  20. club — for golf
  21. drill — army training
  22. bark — to shout
  23. cue — a signal
  24. wind — moving air

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