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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. rest — what's left
  3. cold — an illness
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. saw — the tool
  7. kid — child
  8. rest — a break
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. lean — to bend
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. pitch — completely
  15. kid — to tease
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. saw — the tool
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. rest — what's left
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. lean — thin
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. kick — in football
  24. cold — not warm

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