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

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. rule — a law
  8. object — a thing
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. root — of a plant
  12. object — an aim
  13. object — to protest
  14. rule — government
  15. kid — child
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. bark — to shout
  18. root — of a word
  19. kid — to tease
  20. lie — to recline
  21. cold — an illness
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. root — the cause
  24. kick — in football

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