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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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. bark — to shout
  3. chest — a box
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. kick — in football
  6. date — the fruit
  7. object — to protest
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. object — a thing
  10. wound — an injury
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. chair — a leader
  17. chest — of your body
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. object — an aim
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. wound — an injury
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. kick — a thrill

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