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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. game — wild animals
  6. mate — a friend
  7. root — of a plant
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. kick — in football
  10. mate — a partner
  11. root — the cause
  12. game — a match
  13. race — a contest
  14. lean — thin
  15. root — of a word
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. lean — to bend
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. race — the arms race
  20. race — humankind
  21. stock — goods
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. mate — to breed
  24. stock — shares

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