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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. fall — the season
  4. kid — to tease
  5. object — an aim
  6. fall — to drop
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. cell — a phone
  10. bark — to shout
  11. object — to protest
  12. object — a thing
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. fall — to drop
  15. hand — in cards
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. lean — thin
  19. hand — help
  20. cell — in biology
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. lean — to bend
  24. kid — child

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