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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.

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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. fall — to drop
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. wound — an injury
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. fall — the season
  7. mate — a friend
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. mate — a partner
  10. content — happy
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. snap — to click
  13. charge — in control
  14. charge — a price
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. charge — electricity
  17. lean — to bend
  18. kick — in football
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. lean — thin
  21. mate — to breed
  22. wound — an injury
  23. content — the amount
  24. fall — to drop

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