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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. race — humankind
  4. key — the most important part
  5. cap — of ice
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. key — in music
  9. ground — crushed
  10. rest — what's left
  11. cap — a lid
  12. pound — a weight
  13. rest — what's left
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. snap — to click
  16. ground — the earth
  17. key — for a lock
  18. rest — a break
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. cap — a hat
  21. kick — in football
  22. race — a contest
  23. ground — a position
  24. race — the arms race

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