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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.

Words on the sheet
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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. march — the month
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. kick — in football
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. pass — a permit
  8. cold — an illness
  9. snap — to click
  10. spring — a coil
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. march — music
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. spring — the season
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. spring — of water
  19. craft — a skill
  20. cold — not warm
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. craft — boats
  24. march — the month

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