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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. wind — moving air
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. track — a song
  7. track — a path
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. lie — to recline
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. bat — the animal
  19. stem — to come from
  20. track — to keep track
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. wind — moving air
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. stem — a stem cell

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