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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'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  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. cue — a hint
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. cue — a signal
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. present — the time now
  6. present — there
  7. fine — high quality
  8. present — a gift
  9. ground — crushed
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. fine — all right
  12. ground — the earth
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. cue — for pool
  16. kick — in football
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. wound — an injury
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. ground — a position
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. bark — to shout
  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