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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. bark — to shout
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. foot — a measure
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. kick — in football
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. chip — for betting
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. rush — hurry
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. mine — for digging
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. rush — to hurry

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