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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. last — to go on
  3. game — wild animals
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. last — final
  7. net — after costs
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. kick — in football
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. last — finally
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. pound — a weight
  20. net — for catching
  21. game — a match
  22. plane — a tool
  23. net — in sport
  24. plane — in geometry

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