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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. kick — in football
  6. track — a song
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. rule — a law
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. file — a line of people
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. track — to keep track
  14. rush — hurry
  15. file — a tool
  16. season — in sport
  17. cold — not warm
  18. file — a document
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. rule — government
  21. season — of the year
  22. track — a path
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. bay — a horse colour

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