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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: plane · drill · kick · bark · spring · rest · lean · kid

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. drill — a practice
  4. drill — the tool
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. kid — child
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. lean — thin
  9. spring — a coil
  10. kid — to tease
  11. kick — in football
  12. drill — army training
  13. spring — of water
  14. plane — a tool
  15. rest — a break
  16. rest — what's left
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. bark — to shout
  19. rest — what's left
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. spring — the season
  23. lean — to bend
  24. lean — to rest against

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