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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. kick — in football
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. rush — hurry
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. net — for catching
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. pass — a permit
  10. net — after costs
  11. squash — to crush
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. tear — from crying
  14. net — in sport
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. tear — from crying
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. squash — the sport
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. tear — to rip
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. trunk — of a tree

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