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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. fall — to drop
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. sharp — clever
  6. rash — a series
  7. board — a committee
  8. row — to paddle
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. chip — to eat
  12. rash — hasty
  13. capital — money
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. fall — to drop
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. row — a line
  19. board — to get on
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. capital — a city
  22. chip — for betting
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. fall — the season

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