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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: game · lean · kick · present · club · pound

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. present — there
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. club — for dancing
  6. pound — a weight
  7. lean — to bend
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. club — a group
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. lean — thin
  13. game — wild animals
  14. present — the time now
  15. kick — in football
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. game — a match
  18. present — a gift

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