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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. 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. snap — to snap out of it
  2. branch — a division
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. kick — in football
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. kid — child
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. land — to come down
  11. kid — to tease
  12. snap — to click
  13. land — ground
  14. rest — what's left
  15. land — a country
  16. rest — what's left
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. 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