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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. kick — in football
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. game — a match
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. chair — a leader
  10. squash — the sport
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. spell — a short time
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. spell — magic
  16. spell — letters
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. game — wild animals
  20. clip — a video
  21. clip — to cut
  22. clip — for paper
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. kick — with a leg

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