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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. row — to paddle
  5. kick — in football
  6. fine — all right
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. prune — to trim
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — to tease
  12. cold — an illness
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. fine — high quality
  15. board — a committee
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. plane — a tool
  18. board — to get on
  19. row — a line
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. prune — to trim
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. cold — not warm
  24. cold — the Cold War

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