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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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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. bark — to shout
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. cue — a hint
  5. swing — to play on
  6. swing — music
  7. cue — a signal
  8. lie — to recline
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. spell — letters
  11. hand — in cards
  12. swing — in golf
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. cue — for pool
  15. file — a line of people
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. spell — magic
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. hand — help
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. spell — a short time
  22. file — a document
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. file — a tool

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