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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. chest — of your body
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. game — wild animals
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. scale — in music
  9. toast — bread
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. cap — a lid
  12. cap — a hat
  13. kick — in football
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. game — a match
  19. staff — employees
  20. chest — a box
  21. scale — size or range
  22. chest — of your body
  23. staff — employees
  24. cap — of ice

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