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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. bound — certain
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. hand — in cards
  6. current — electric
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. bound — obliged
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. season — of the year
  11. bound — tied together
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. current — of water
  16. current — happening now
  17. sharp — clever
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. season — in sport
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. hand — help
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. stem — to come from

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