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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. prune — to trim
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. shower — to wash
  7. kick — in football
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. rule — government
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. rule — a law
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. prune — to trim
  20. shower — rain
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. bat — the animal
  24. safe — a strongbox

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