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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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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. rush — hurry
  3. shower — rain
  4. degree — from a university
  5. rule — government
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. shower — to wash
  16. degree — temperature
  17. degree — an amount
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. rule — a law
  21. kick — in football
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. rush — a thrill

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