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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. sharp — clever
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. hand — help
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. bark — to shout
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. key — the most important part
  12. pass — a permit
  13. kick — in football
  14. key — in music
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. key — for a lock
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. tube — a container
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. dip — to sink
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. hand — in cards

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