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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. mine — for digging
  3. face — to confront
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. face — part of the head
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. snap — to click
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. lean — to bend
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. court — of law
  14. lean — thin
  15. court — for sport
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. kick — in football
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. face — to point toward
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. roll — a list
  23. court — of a king
  24. roll — a cake

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