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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  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. leaves — lets stay
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. content — the amount
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. bark — to shout
  6. content — happy
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. march — the month
  9. cell — in biology
  10. race — a contest
  11. race — the arms race
  12. race — humankind
  13. cell — a phone
  14. track — to keep track
  15. march — the month
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. track — a path
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. march — music
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. track — a song
  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