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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. board — to get on
  4. cold — an illness
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. cold — not warm
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. ball — a dance
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. drill — army training
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. lie — to recline
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. drill — the tool
  18. board — a committee
  19. tear — to rip
  20. tear — from crying
  21. drill — a practice
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. ball — a great time
  24. tear — from crying

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