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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 ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. root — of a plant
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. spring — of water
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. rash — a series
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. kick — in football
  11. race — humankind
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. spring — a coil
  16. root — the cause
  17. spring — the season
  18. bat — the animal
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. race — the arms race
  21. rash — hasty
  22. race — a contest
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. root — of a word

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