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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. tear — to rip
  4. cap — a hat
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bark — to shout
  7. cap — a lid
  8. bulb — for light
  9. object — a thing
  10. wax — to grow
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. tear — from crying
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. tear — from crying
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. cap — of ice
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. object — an aim
  23. object — to protest
  24. kick — in football

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