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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. kick — in football
  3. lean — to bend
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. swing — music
  6. last — final
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. rule — a law
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. last — to go on
  12. rule — government
  13. last — finally
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. swing — to play on
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. swing — in golf

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