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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. rush — hurry
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. chip — to eat
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. chip — for betting
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. net — for catching
  12. net — in sport
  13. ground — the earth
  14. wound — an injury
  15. sharp — clever
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. ground — crushed
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. ground — a position
  21. lean — thin
  22. net — after costs
  23. wound — an injury
  24. kick — in football

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