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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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468
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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. degree — an amount
  5. track — to keep track
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. mug — a cup
  9. fine — high quality
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. mug — to rob
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. kick — in football
  16. degree — from a university
  17. track — a song
  18. mug — a face
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. degree — temperature
  22. fine — all right
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. track — a path

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