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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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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. wind — moving air
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. fall — to drop
  8. game — wild animals
  9. fall — to drop
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. game — a match
  13. fall — the season
  14. saw — the tool
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. kick — in football
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. saw — the tool
  21. branch — a division
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. nail — for a hammer

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