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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 120 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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. wound — an injury
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. land — ground
  11. land — a country
  12. pass — a permit
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. stem — to come from
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. land — to come down
  19. fine — all right
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. fine — high quality
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. wound — an injury

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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