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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. snap — to click
  3. wound — an injury
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. staff — employees
  7. foot — a measure
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. ball — a great time
  10. kick — in football
  11. staff — employees
  12. march — the month
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. tear — from crying
  15. staff — a stick
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. march — music
  19. wound — an injury
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — to rip
  24. ball — a dance

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