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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 120 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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. kick — in football
  3. bank — for money
  4. drill — a practice
  5. net — for catching
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. net — in sport
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. bat — the animal
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. net — after costs
  12. capital — a city
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. chip — to eat
  15. bank — of a river
  16. chip — for betting
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. drill — the tool
  20. bank — for money
  21. capital — money
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. drill — army training

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