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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.

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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. swing — music
  3. game — a match
  4. cold — not warm
  5. swing — in golf
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. craft — a skill
  10. swing — to play on
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. snap — to click
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. game — wild animals
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. kick — in football
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bulb — for light
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. craft — boats
  24. cold — an illness

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