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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. rule — government
  3. bark — to shout
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. fall — to drop
  6. object — a thing
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. hand — in cards
  9. fall — the season
  10. race — the arms race
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. race — humankind
  13. race — a contest
  14. net — for catching
  15. net — in sport
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. fall — to drop
  19. object — an aim
  20. object — to protest
  21. kick — in football
  22. hand — help
  23. net — after costs
  24. rule — a law

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