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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. cell — a phone
  3. cell — in biology
  4. last — final
  5. chest — of your body
  6. rush — hurry
  7. last — to go on
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. chest — of your body
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. last — finally
  21. plane — a tool
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. chest — a box
  24. dip — to sink

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