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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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. cell — in biology
  4. club — for golf
  5. club — a group
  6. club — for dancing
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. press — a publisher
  9. plane — a tool
  10. press — to push
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. season — in sport
  14. press — newspapers
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. row — to paddle
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. kick — in football
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. season — of the year
  22. row — a line
  23. cell — a phone
  24. row — a quarrel

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