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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. kick — in football
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. degree — from a university
  8. wind — moving air
  9. spring — of water
  10. stock — goods
  11. cue — for pool
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. spring — the season
  14. degree — temperature
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. cue — a signal
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. bear — the animal
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. degree — an amount
  21. spring — a coil
  22. cue — a hint
  23. bear — the animal
  24. stock — shares

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