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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 116 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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. capital — a city
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. net — after costs
  5. press — to push
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. net — in sport
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. capital — money
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. file — a tool
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. kick — in football
  18. file — a document
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. press — newspapers
  22. file — a line of people
  23. net — for catching
  24. press — a publisher

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