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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. net — after costs
  4. net — in sport
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. lean — thin
  9. lean — to bend
  10. stock — goods
  11. fall — to drop
  12. kick — in football
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. stock — shares
  15. fall — to drop
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. shower — to wash
  18. net — for catching
  19. fall — the season
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. dip — to sink
  22. shower — rain
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. lean — to rest against

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