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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. net — in sport
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. last — final
  5. wake — a trail
  6. chair — a leader
  7. prune — to trim
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. last — finally
  11. net — for catching
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. prune — to trim
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. net — after costs
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. last — to go on
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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