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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. spell — magic
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. kick — in football
  5. rest — what's left
  6. kid — to tease
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. rest — a break
  10. spell — letters
  11. row — a line
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. can — to be able to
  17. stem — to come from
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. rest — what's left
  20. spell — a short time
  21. row — to paddle
  22. kid — child
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. can — a tin

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