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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. present — the time now
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. chest — of your body
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. present — a gift
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. chest — a box
  13. stand — to bear
  14. present — there
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. chest — of your body
  19. kid — to tease
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. kid — child
  24. kick — in football

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