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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. field — a subject
  5. bark — to shout
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. kick — in football
  9. field — farmland
  10. season — in sport
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. rock — a stone
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. field — for sport
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. season — of the year
  18. deal — to handle
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. rock — music
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. deal — a big deal

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