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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. snap — to click
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. staff — a stick
  8. rash — a series
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. staff — employees
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. rash — hasty
  13. cell — in biology
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. cell — a phone
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. lie — to recline
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. bat — the animal
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. bark — to shout
  24. staff — employees

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