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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. board — to get on
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. last — to go on
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. board — a committee
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. scale — size or range
  13. kick — in football
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. kid — child
  16. snap — to click
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. sharp — clever
  19. pound — a weight
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. last — final
  22. last — finally
  23. scale — in music
  24. kid — to tease

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