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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: sharp · bark · straw · ground · track · foot · kick · rush

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. track — to keep track
  7. track — a path
  8. kick — in football
  9. rush — hurry
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. track — a song
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. ground — a position
  16. ground — crushed
  17. sharp — clever
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. ground — the earth
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. foot — a measure
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. bark — to shout

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