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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. ground — a position
  3. bear — the animal
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. ground — the earth
  8. rule — a law
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. kick — in football
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. ground — crushed
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. toast — bread
  20. stem — to come from
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. rule — government
  24. bear — the animal

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