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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. stock — shares
  5. field — for sport
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. game — wild animals
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. mug — to rob
  10. mug — a face
  11. game — a match
  12. mug — a cup
  13. field — farmland
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. root — the cause
  16. kick — in football
  17. root — of a word
  18. root — of a plant
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. stock — goods
  21. bark — to shout
  22. field — a subject
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. kick — a thrill

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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