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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. bound — tied together
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. kick — in football
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. tube — a container
  11. vault — a safe
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. tube — the underground
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. foot — a measure
  16. kid — to tease
  17. bound — certain
  18. bound — obliged
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. kid — child

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