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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. kick — in football
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. bark — to shout
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. snap — to click
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. stock — goods
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. stock — shares
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. stand — to bear
  23. pound — a weight
  24. nail — for a hammer

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