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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — child
  3. march — the month
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. face — part of the head
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. stem — to come from
  12. face — to point toward
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. dip — to sink
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. march — music
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. march — the month
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. face — to confront
  24. kick — in football

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