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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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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: mug · kick · stand · tear · game · rush · foot · hand

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. game — a match
  3. hand — help
  4. tear — from crying
  5. game — wild animals
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. foot — a measure
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. hand — in cards
  12. rush — hurry
  13. mug — a cup
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. stand — to bear
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. mug — a face
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. tear — from crying
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. mug — to rob
  22. kick — in football
  23. tear — to rip
  24. kick — with a leg

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