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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 120 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 · stick · hide · lash · wave · cabinet · cold · cell

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. cell — in biology
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. cell — a phone
  9. bark — to shout
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. cold — an illness
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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