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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 124 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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  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. staff — a stick
  2. staff — employees
  3. kid — to tease
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. spring — the season
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. pitch — completely
  9. staff — employees
  10. ball — a dance
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. spring — a coil
  13. ball — a great time
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. spring — of water
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. kid — child
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  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