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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: bay · object · shower · kick · face · bark · fall · court

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. shower — rain
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. fall — the season
  5. bark — to shout
  6. court — of a king
  7. face — to confront
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. object — a thing
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. face — part of the head
  14. face — to point toward
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. kick — in football
  17. court — for sport
  18. object — to protest
  19. shower — to wash
  20. fall — to drop
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. object — an aim
  23. court — of law
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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