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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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468
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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. rule — a law
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. ball — a dance
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. foot — a measure
  12. season — of the year
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. hand — in cards
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. kick — in football
  17. ball — a great time
  18. chip — for betting
  19. hand — help
  20. rule — government
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. season — in sport
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. chip — to eat

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