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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. cell — in biology
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. mine — for digging
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. cap — of ice
  17. mark — a grade
  18. mark — a trace
  19. cell — a phone
  20. cap — a hat
  21. cap — a lid
  22. ground — a position
  23. ground — the earth
  24. ground — crushed

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