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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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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. cold — an illness
  5. key — for a lock
  6. key — in music
  7. root — of a word
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. key — the most important part
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. cue — a hint
  12. cold — not warm
  13. root — of a plant
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. bark — to shout
  17. cue — for pool
  18. root — the cause
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. cue — a signal
  23. kick — in football
  24. calf — of the 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