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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: present · bay · bowl · dip · cold · land · foot · kick

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. present — there
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. land — ground
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. cold — an illness
  9. dip — to sink
  10. foot — a measure
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. present — the time now
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. cold — not warm
  20. land — a country
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. present — a gift
  24. land — to come down

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