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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wound — an injury
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. kick — in football
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. wound — an injury
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. key — the most important part
  12. bark — to shout
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. hand — help
  15. hand — in cards
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. mark — a grade
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. key — in music
  22. wind — moving air
  23. mark — a trace
  24. deal — to handle

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