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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: wound · kick · hide · deal · pit · rest · tube · cell

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. tube — the underground
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. cell — a phone
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. cell — in biology
  9. kick — in football
  10. wound — an injury
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. pit — a hole
  13. rest — what's left
  14. pit — in a race
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. tube — a container
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. rest — what's left
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. rest — a break
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. deal — to handle
  24. wound — an injury

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