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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. lean — to bend
  3. mark — a grade
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. net — after costs
  7. shower — rain
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. shower — to wash
  10. wound — an injury
  11. mark — a trace
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. spring — the season
  14. net — in sport
  15. wound — an injury
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. lean — thin
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. kick — in football
  21. spring — a coil
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. spring — of water

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