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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 116 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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. bark — to shout
  3. rest — what's left
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. kick — in football
  7. kid — to tease
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. rest — what's left
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. kid — child
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — the season
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. hand — help
  21. rest — a break
  22. cold — an illness
  23. cold — not warm
  24. hand — in cards

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