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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'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. firm — steady
  3. tear — from crying
  4. roll — a cake
  5. squash — the sport
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. firm — a company
  8. sharp — clever
  9. firm — decided
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. kick — in football
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. squash — to crush
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. roll — a list
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. tear — to rip
  24. tear — from crying

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