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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. kick — in football
  4. court — for sport
  5. bark — to shout
  6. saw — the tool
  7. rock — a stone
  8. face — part of the head
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. face — to point toward
  11. land — to come down
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. rush — hurry
  14. court — of law
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. land — ground
  19. face — to confront
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. saw — the tool
  23. land — a country
  24. court — of a king

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