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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: fine · spell · staff · pitcher · clip · hand · bark · wake

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. staff — a stick
  3. hand — in cards
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. spell — letters
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. wake — a trail
  9. clip — a video
  10. bark — to shout
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. spell — a short time
  13. hand — help
  14. fine — all right
  15. clip — for paper
  16. spell — magic
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. staff — employees
  21. fine — high quality
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. staff — employees
  24. clip — to cut

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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