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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  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. kick — a thrill
  2. rule — a law
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. rule — government
  7. cue — a hint
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. cue — for pool
  11. bark — to shout
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. cold — not warm
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. toast — bread
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bear — the animal
  22. cold — an illness
  23. cue — a signal
  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