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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. kick — in football
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. spell — letters
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. spell — magic
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. present — the time now
  11. spell — a short time
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. present — there
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. present — a gift
  18. game — a match
  19. content — happy
  20. branch — a division
  21. game — wild animals
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. content — the amount

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