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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. land — ground
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. mark — a grade
  7. land — to come down
  8. kick — in football
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. board — a committee
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. row — a line
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. land — a country
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. board — to get on
  20. row — to paddle
  21. snap — to click
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. mark — a trace

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