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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 120 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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. kick — in football
  3. rush — hurry
  4. branch — a division
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. cue — for pool
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. cue — a signal
  12. game — wild animals
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. cue — a hint
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. game — a match
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. perch — the fish
  24. dip — to sink

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