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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. mug — a cup
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. kick — in football
  6. tube — a container
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. spell — a short time
  9. pop — to visit
  10. spell — magic
  11. bat — the animal
  12. fine — all right
  13. tube — the underground
  14. snap — to click
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. mug — a face
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. spell — letters
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. pop — soda
  22. mug — to rob
  23. pop — music
  24. fine — high quality

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