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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. tube — a container
  3. squash — to crush
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. scale — size or range
  6. cell — a phone
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. fine — all right
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. squash — the sport
  12. firm — decided
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. fine — high quality
  15. tube — the underground
  16. scale — in music
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. cell — in biology
  21. wake — a trail
  22. kick — in football
  23. firm — steady
  24. firm — a company

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