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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. last — finally
  3. wax — to grow
  4. bound — tied together
  5. bound — certain
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. rash — a series
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. shower — rain
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. press — a publisher
  13. rash — hasty
  14. shower — to wash
  15. press — to push
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. last — final
  18. kick — in football
  19. last — to go on
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. press — newspapers
  24. bound — obliged

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