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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. craft — a skill
  4. key — for a lock
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. key — the most important part
  7. degree — from a university
  8. degree — an amount
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. craft — boats
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. snap — to click
  15. fall — to drop
  16. key — in music
  17. fall — the season
  18. fall — to drop
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. degree — temperature
  22. bark — to shout
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. 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