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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 120 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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Word bank
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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: band · kick · wound · game · mark · lie · safe · suit

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  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. mark — to pay attention
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. suit — to fit
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. game — a match
  8. mark — a trace
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. game — wild animals
  11. band — a music group
  12. band — a ring
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. suit — in cards
  15. suit — clothes
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. lie — to recline
  18. wound — an injury
  19. kick — in football
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. wound — an injury
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  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