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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: bark · track · squash · tube · file · scale · snap · calf

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. tube — the underground
  5. track — a path
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. track — to keep track
  9. scale — size or range
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. squash — the sport
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. file — a document
  17. bark — to shout
  18. scale — in music
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. track — a song
  21. file — a tool
  22. squash — to crush
  23. tube — a container
  24. file — a line of people

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