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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.

Words on the sheet
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: kick · spring · fine · rash · track · bark · bay · spell

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. spell — letters
  4. track — to keep track
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. spring — the season
  7. spell — magic
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. track — a song
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. spring — a coil
  15. spell — a short time
  16. spring — of water
  17. track — a path
  18. fine — high quality
  19. bark — to shout
  20. kick — in football
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. rash — a series
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. fine — all right

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