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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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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. court — of a king
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. current — of water
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. kick — in football
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. court — of law
  15. current — electric
  16. bark — to shout
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. court — for sport
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. current — happening now

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