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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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Word bank
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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. cold — an illness
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. cold — not warm
  6. key — the most important part
  7. bound — obliged
  8. bound — tied together
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. spell — letters
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. key — for a lock
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. spell — a short time
  20. pound — a weight
  21. key — in music
  22. spell — magic
  23. bound — certain
  24. lash — an eyelash

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