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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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Word bank
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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. spring — a coil
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. band — a ring
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. rock — a stone
  7. kick — in football
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. spring — of water
  10. band — a music group
  11. ball — a great time
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. rock — music
  16. wind — moving air
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. spring — the season
  21. wind — moving air
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. ball — a dance
  24. hide — to keep secret

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