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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. game — wild animals
  3. prune — to trim
  4. lie — to recline
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. cell — in biology
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. current — happening now
  12. roll — a list
  13. game — a match
  14. roll — a cake
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. present — there
  17. present — a gift
  18. cell — a phone
  19. prune — to trim
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. current — electric
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. current — of water
  24. kick — in football

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