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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. degree — from a university
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. spring — a coil
  5. lie — to recline
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. spring — the season
  8. kick — in football
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. season — of the year
  13. degree — temperature
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. season — in sport
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. spring — of water
  19. pass — a permit
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. snap — to click
  23. degree — an amount
  24. season — to add flavour

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