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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. mate — a friend
  3. degree — from a university
  4. kick — in football
  5. mate — a partner
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. row — a line
  8. current — electric
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. current — of water
  11. row — to paddle
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. current — happening now
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. degree — an amount
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. degree — temperature
  18. rash — a series
  19. mate — to breed
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. rash — hasty
  24. cabinet — ministers

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