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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. mine — for digging
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. spell — letters
  7. spell — a short time
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. spell — magic
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. pop — music
  19. chip — to eat
  20. chip — for betting
  21. pop — to visit
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. pop — soda
  24. kick — in football

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