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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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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 · chest · bat · rule · wave · cabinet · sharp · racket

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bark — to shout
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. bat — the animal
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. chest — of your body
  10. sharp — clever
  11. chest — a box
  12. rule — a law
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. rule — government
  23. chest — of your body
  24. racket — for tennis

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