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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 120 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: field · bark · kick · staff · rest · key · stand · content

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. staff — employees
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. content — happy
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. content — the amount
  9. rest — what's left
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. stand — to bear
  12. field — a subject
  13. kick — in football
  14. key — the most important part
  15. field — farmland
  16. key — for a lock
  17. key — in music
  18. rest — a break
  19. staff — a stick
  20. staff — employees
  21. bark — to shout
  22. field — for sport
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. rest — what's left

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