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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. march — the month
  4. net — in sport
  5. game — a match
  6. march — music
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. cell — a phone
  11. kick — in football
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. game — wild animals
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. net — after costs
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. march — the month
  21. cell — in biology
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. game — a kind of play

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