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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 120 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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468
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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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. snap — to click
  4. kick — in football
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. chair — a leader
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. stem — to come from
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. game — a match
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. rash — hasty
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. game — wild animals
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. wound — an injury
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. ruler — a monarch

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