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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 124 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.

Make a worksheet

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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468
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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 get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. face — to point toward
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — moving air
  6. face — part of the head
  7. row — to paddle
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. kick — in football
  10. rule — government
  11. rule — a law
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. row — a line
  17. bark — to shout
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. face — to confront
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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