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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. stem — to come from
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. kick — in football
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. wound — an injury
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. bound — certain
  13. bound — tied together
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. scale — in music
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. mine — for digging
  18. wound — an injury
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. swing — music
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. scale — size or range
  23. bound — obliged
  24. swing — to play on

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