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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 124 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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. can — a tin
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. wound — an injury
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. foot — a measure
  14. bark — to shout
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. wound — an injury
  19. can — a tin
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. kick — in football
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. sharp — clever

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