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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — the season
  5. lie — to recline
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. squash — the sport
  9. stem — to come from
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. land — to come down
  16. land — ground
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. land — a country
  19. wound — an injury
  20. kick — in football
  21. fall — to drop
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. squash — to crush
  24. racket — for tennis

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