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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.

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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. kick — in football
  7. mate — a partner
  8. file — a tool
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. wind — moving air
  16. mate — to breed
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. file — a line of people
  19. wind — moving air
  20. mate — a friend
  21. file — a document
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. bark — to shout
  24. stand — to bear

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