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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. bulb — for light
  3. prune — to trim
  4. kick — in football
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. land — to come down
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. bat — the animal
  11. prune — to trim
  12. wake — a trail
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. bulb — for light
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. land — ground
  24. land — a country

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