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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. rule — government
  5. mark — a grade
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. rule — a law
  8. kick — in football
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. staff — a stick
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. mark — a trace
  14. staff — employees
  15. track — a path
  16. drill — army training
  17. track — a song
  18. bark — to shout
  19. drill — the tool
  20. staff — employees
  21. scale — in music
  22. scale — size or range
  23. drill — a practice
  24. rule — to rule out

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