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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. rash — hasty
  3. kick — in football
  4. ground — the earth
  5. spring — of water
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. current — electric
  9. current — happening now
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. ground — a position
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. ground — crushed
  15. spring — the season
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. spring — a coil
  20. current — of water
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. wake — a trail
  23. rash — a series
  24. rash — on the skin

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