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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. wound — an injury
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. kick — in football
  10. game — wild animals
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. track — a song
  14. game — a match
  15. track — a path
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. track — to keep track
  18. deal — to handle
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. pitch — completely
  22. hand — help
  23. wound — an injury
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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