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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. fork — in a road
  9. snap — to click
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. land — a country
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. chair — a leader
  15. land — to come down
  16. land — ground
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — to rip
  21. kick — in football
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. tear — from crying
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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