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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. face — part of the head
  6. row — to paddle
  7. kid — to tease
  8. kid — child
  9. hand — help
  10. hand — in cards
  11. row — a line
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. court — of law
  14. face — to confront
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. court — for sport
  18. court — of a king
  19. snap — to click
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. face — to point toward
  22. kick — in football
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. kick — with a leg

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