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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. kick — in football
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. capital — money
  7. lie — to recline
  8. capital — a city
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. plane — a tool
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. scale — size or range
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. kid — to tease
  19. content — the amount
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. kid — child
  22. snap — to click
  23. scale — in music
  24. content — happy

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