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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: game · kick · bark · lean · face · bank · court · straw

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bank — of a river
  3. face — part of the head
  4. court — of a king
  5. bark — to shout
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. face — to confront
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. face — to point toward
  10. lean — thin
  11. game — wild animals
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. bank — for money
  14. bank — for money
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. court — of law
  17. court — for sport
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. game — a match
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. lean — to bend
  23. kick — in football
  24. game — a kind of play

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