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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. pit — in a race
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. rash — a series
  6. scale — in music
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. scale — size or range
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. spring — of water
  12. court — of a king
  13. spring — a coil
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. bark — to shout
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. rash — hasty
  18. spring — the season
  19. kick — in football
  20. court — of law
  21. pit — a hole
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. branch — a division
  24. court — for sport

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