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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. land — a country
  4. march — music
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. race — humankind
  9. land — ground
  10. march — the month
  11. march — the month
  12. land — to come down
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. race — the arms race
  20. kick — in football
  21. race — a contest
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. pitch — completely

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