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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. wound — an injury
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. net — for catching
  9. kick — in football
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. present — a gift
  14. bat — the animal
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. wound — an injury
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. present — there
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. net — in sport
  24. net — after costs

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