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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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468
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: bark · capital · stick · straw · kick · season · plane · sharp

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  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. season — of the year
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. kick — in football
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. capital — money
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. capital — a city
  17. sharp — clever
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. plane — a tool
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. season — in sport
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  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