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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: rest · spring · land · foot · bark · lie · pop · kid

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. foot — a measure
  3. pop — soda
  4. land — ground
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. spring — the season
  7. land — to come down
  8. rest — what's left
  9. land — a country
  10. rest — what's left
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. pop — to visit
  13. kid — to tease
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. spring — of water
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. pop — music
  18. kid — child
  19. rest — a break
  20. spring — a coil
  21. lie — to recline
  22. bark — to shout
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. foot — the bottom

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