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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  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. straw — dry grass
  2. bark — to shout
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. scale — size or range
  5. rest — what's left
  6. spring — of water
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. bore — to drill
  11. rest — a break
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. scale — in music
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. rest — what's left
  18. spring — the season
  19. spring — a coil
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. bore — to tire
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  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