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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 116 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: stick · nail · wave · scale · kid · bark · cold · net

  1. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. bark — to shout
  3. kid — to tease
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. cold — an illness
  6. cold — not warm
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. scale — in music
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. net — for catching
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. net — in sport
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. net — after costs
  23. scale — size or range
  24. kid — child

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