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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 retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. chest — of your body
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. rule — a law
  5. swing — to play on
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. tube — the underground
  8. chest — a box
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. season — of the year
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. rule — government
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. tube — a container
  18. kick — in football
  19. cell — in biology
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. swing — in golf
  22. cell — a phone
  23. swing — music
  24. chest — of your 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