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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. swing — music
  3. ground — a position
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. rush — hurry
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. ground — the earth
  10. swing — to play on
  11. ground — crushed
  12. lie — to recline
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. game — a match
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. game — wild animals
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. swing — in golf
  21. kick — in football
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. cabinet — ministers

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