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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. content — happy
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. bank — of a river
  6. row — a line
  7. content — the amount
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. chest — of your body
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. dip — to sink
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. bank — for money
  16. row — to paddle
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. game — wild animals
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. bank — for money
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. chest — a box
  23. game — a match
  24. chest — of your body

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