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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  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 — a thrill
  2. mark — a trace
  3. staff — employees
  4. kick — in football
  5. land — a country
  6. saw — the tool
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. mark — a grade
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. wake — a trail
  11. staff — a stick
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. wind — moving air
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. land — to come down
  17. land — ground
  18. wind — moving air
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. pitch — completely
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. saw — the tool
  23. wake — before a funeral
  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