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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kick · race · wake · lean · fall · chip

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. race — humankind
  3. race — a contest
  4. wake — a trail
  5. chip — for betting
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. kick — in football
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. fall — to drop
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. race — the arms race
  13. fall — to drop
  14. chip — to eat
  15. lean — to bend
  16. fall — the season
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. chip — in a computer

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