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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. march — music
  3. dip — to sink
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. bore — to tire
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. cell — a phone
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. bark — to shout
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. bore — to drill
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. march — the month
  17. march — the month
  18. fork — in a road
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. cell — in biology
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. kick — with a leg

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