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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. swing — to play on
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. branch — a division
  5. kick — in football
  6. swing — in golf
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. can — to be able to
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. swing — music
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mine — for digging
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. rule — a law
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. rule — government
  20. row — to paddle
  21. can — a tin
  22. snap — to click
  23. can — a tin
  24. row — a quarrel

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