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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. cap — a lid
  4. key — in music
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. hand — in cards
  7. hand — help
  8. bark — to shout
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. tube — a container
  11. chest — of your body
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. kick — in football
  14. tube — the underground
  15. club — for golf
  16. cap — of ice
  17. key — the most important part
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. club — a group
  20. chest — of your body
  21. key — for a lock
  22. chest — a box
  23. cap — a hat
  24. bark — of a tree

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