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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. degree — from a university
  3. degree — an amount
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. board — a committee
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. deal — to handle
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. wax — to grow
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. board — to get on
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. degree — temperature
  21. wound — an injury
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. arm — a part of something

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