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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. lie — to recline
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. spell — a short time
  6. spell — letters
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. kick — in football
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. scale — in music
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. bark — to shout
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. spell — magic
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. scale — size or range

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