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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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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: rock · straw · bat · lie · kick · land · bowl · present

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. lie — to recline
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. land — ground
  6. present — the time now
  7. land — to come down
  8. land — a country
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. present — a gift
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. rock — music
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. rock — a stone
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. kick — in football
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. present — there
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. bat — the animal

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