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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. wind — moving air
  3. fall — the season
  4. content — the amount
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. perch — the fish
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. wind — moving air
  10. kick — in football
  11. key — in music
  12. fall — to drop
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. rule — a law
  15. content — happy
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mine — for digging
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. rule — government
  20. key — for a lock
  21. fall — to drop
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. key — the most important part

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