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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.

Make a worksheet

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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. lean — thin
  3. key — the most important part
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. wind — moving air
  6. mine — for digging
  7. bark — to shout
  8. kick — in football
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. key — for a lock
  12. lean — to bend
  13. wind — moving air
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. key — in music
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. bark — of a tree

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