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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 124 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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468
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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. board — to get on
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. wind — moving air
  7. pass — a permit
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. ball — a dance
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. ball — a great time
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. wind — moving air
  19. cell — in biology
  20. lie — to recline
  21. kick — in football
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. board — a committee
  24. straw — dry grass

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