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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. clip — to cut
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. lie — to recline
  7. deal — to handle
  8. sharp — clever
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. drill — army training
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. drill — a practice
  14. drill — the tool
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. clip — for paper
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. kick — in football
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. clip — a video

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