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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 124 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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. kick — in football
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. foot — a measure
  5. kid — to tease
  6. present — a gift
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. track — to keep track
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — child
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. game — wild animals
  18. track — a path
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. present — there
  23. track — a song
  24. present — the time now

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