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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. rest — what's left
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. pop — soda
  6. rest — what's left
  7. pop — to visit
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. drill — a practice
  11. drill — the tool
  12. swing — in golf
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. drill — army training
  15. swing — to play on
  16. rest — a break
  17. pop — music
  18. swing — music
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. field — a subject
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. field — for sport
  23. kick — in football
  24. field — farmland

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