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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. net — for catching
  6. net — after costs
  7. ground — the earth
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. kick — in football
  10. ground — a position
  11. rest — a break
  12. net — in sport
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. rest — what's left
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. squash — to crush
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. rock — a stone
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. ground — crushed
  23. rest — what's left
  24. squash — the 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