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

Word bank: rest · degree · bore · bark · wake · chip · bowl · kick

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. degree — an amount
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. degree — from a university
  9. kick — in football
  10. wake — a trail
  11. rest — what's left
  12. chip — to eat
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. chip — for betting
  15. rest — a break
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bore — to tire
  20. rest — what's left
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. degree — temperature

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