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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. rock — a stone
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. face — to point toward
  8. chest — of your body
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. ball — a great time
  11. face — part of the head
  12. face — to confront
  13. chest — a box
  14. chest — of your body
  15. shower — to wash
  16. row — to paddle
  17. rock — music
  18. season — of the year
  19. row — a line
  20. kick — in football
  21. shower — rain
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. ball — a dance
  24. season — in sport

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