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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. object — an aim
  5. kick — in football
  6. object — a thing
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. object — to protest
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. stock — goods
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. cold — not warm
  14. mine — for digging
  15. cold — an illness
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — an injury
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. stock — shares
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. kick — with a leg

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