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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 120 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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  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. cold — an illness
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. kick — in football
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. bark — to shout
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. band — a music group
  12. pit — in a race
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. stand — to bear
  15. pit — a hole
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. band — a ring
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. cold — not warm
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. stand — on your feet
  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