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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 124 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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. fine — all right
  3. net — for catching
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. fall — the season
  7. pit — in a race
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. fine — high quality
  10. pit — a hole
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. swing — to play on
  13. fall — to drop
  14. swing — music
  15. swing — in golf
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. bat — the animal
  18. wind — moving air
  19. net — in sport
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. net — after costs
  22. wind — moving air
  23. fall — to drop
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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