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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. object — an aim
  4. spring — the season
  5. squash — to crush
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. object — a thing
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. bound — obliged
  11. spring — of water
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. sharp — clever
  16. object — to protest
  17. squash — the sport
  18. bound — tied together
  19. hand — in cards
  20. spring — a coil
  21. hand — help
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. bound — certain
  24. hand — part of the body

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