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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 116 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.

Make a worksheet

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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Word bank
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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. rush — hurry
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. chair — a leader
  6. saw — the tool
  7. key — the most important part
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. key — for a lock
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. kick — in football
  15. key — in music
  16. scale — size or range
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. scale — in music
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. saw — the tool
  24. coach — a trainer

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