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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. object — to protest
  6. object — an aim
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. drill — a practice
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. season — of the year
  14. bark — to shout
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. object — a thing
  18. last — to go on
  19. last — finally
  20. kick — in football
  21. season — in sport
  22. last — final
  23. drill — army training
  24. drill — the tool

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