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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. stock — shares
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. net — in sport
  5. net — for catching
  6. face — part of the head
  7. face — to confront
  8. kick — in football
  9. stock — goods
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. branch — a division
  12. net — after costs
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. face — to point toward
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. kid — child
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. mine — for digging
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. kid — to tease
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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