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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. cap — of ice
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. cap — a hat
  6. charge — electricity
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. tear — from crying
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. tear — to rip
  13. wind — moving air
  14. charge — a price
  15. kick — in football
  16. cap — a lid
  17. charge — in control
  18. wound — an injury
  19. tear — from crying
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. wind — moving air
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. wind — to turn a key

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