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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bark — to shout
  5. drill — army training
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. swing — in golf
  8. drill — the tool
  9. swing — music
  10. chest — of your body
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. kick — in football
  13. drill — a practice
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. cell — in biology
  17. swing — to play on
  18. cell — a phone
  19. staff — employees
  20. staff — employees
  21. chest — a box
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. kick — with a leg

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