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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. kick — in football
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. file — a line of people
  7. bulb — for light
  8. rest — what's left
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. root — the cause
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. band — a ring
  13. file — a tool
  14. saw — the tool
  15. root — of a word
  16. band — a music group
  17. root — of a plant
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. saw — the tool
  21. bulb — for light
  22. rest — a break
  23. file — a document
  24. rest — what's left

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