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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. chip — for betting
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. drill — the tool
  5. mate — to breed
  6. drill — army training
  7. race — humankind
  8. shower — to wash
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. drill — a practice
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. mate — a partner
  15. mine — for digging
  16. race — a contest
  17. mate — a friend
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. chip — to eat
  21. shower — rain
  22. race — the arms race
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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