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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. kick — in football
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. rash — a series
  10. face — to confront
  11. toast — bread
  12. face — to point toward
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. rash — hasty
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. row — to paddle
  19. face — part of the head
  20. mark — a trace
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. mine — for digging
  24. mark — a grade

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