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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 116 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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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. staff — employees
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. object — a thing
  6. tube — the underground
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. staff — a stick
  9. object — to protest
  10. last — final
  11. tube — a container
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. wake — a trail
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. staff — employees
  17. file — a document
  18. last — finally
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. last — to go on
  21. object — an aim
  22. file — a tool
  23. file — a line of people
  24. hide — animal skin

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