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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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. track — a path
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. track — a song
  5. ground — a position
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. cold — an illness
  9. ground — the earth
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. face — part of the head
  12. face — to point toward
  13. track — to keep track
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. rush — hurry
  16. face — to confront
  17. ground — crushed
  18. kick — in football
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. board — to get on
  23. board — a committee
  24. cold — not warm

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