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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: bear · patient · net · bark · lash · rest · kick · object

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. rest — what's left
  3. net — for catching
  4. object — to protest
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. bear — the animal
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. object — an aim
  10. bear — the animal
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. object — a thing
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. kick — in football
  18. net — in sport
  19. bark — to shout
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. rest — what's left
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. rest — a break

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