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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. snap — to click
  3. scale — size or range
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. field — farmland
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. field — for sport
  9. scale — in music
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. rush — hurry
  13. field — a subject
  14. kick — in football
  15. rule — a law
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. rule — government

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