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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. cell — in biology
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. game — a match
  7. rash — a series
  8. capital — a city
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. cell — a phone
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. capital — money
  15. suit — to fit
  16. kick — in football
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. suit — clothes
  20. shower — to wash
  21. rash — hasty
  22. shower — rain
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. game — wild animals

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