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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 116 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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. bark — to shout
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. game — a match
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. clip — a video
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. clip — to cut
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. stock — shares
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. game — wild animals
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. pound — a weight
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. stock — goods
  23. clip — for paper
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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