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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  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. snap — to snap out of it
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. kick — in football
  6. track — to keep track
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. lie — to recline
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. chest — of your body
  13. race — the arms race
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. race — a contest
  16. chest — a box
  17. race — humankind
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. track — a path
  20. track — a song
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. snap — to click
  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