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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. drill — army training
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. row — a line
  5. spring — of water
  6. saw — the tool
  7. drill — the tool
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. drill — a practice
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. bark — to shout
  15. saw — the tool
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. spring — a coil
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. spring — the season
  23. kick — in football
  24. row — to paddle

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