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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. shower — rain
  3. squash — to crush
  4. squash — the sport
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. present — the time now
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. stand — to bear
  14. present — a gift
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. scale — size or range
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. shower — to wash
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. present — there
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. scale — in music

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