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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: roll · mine · present · squash · arm · land · kick · lash

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. land — ground
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. squash — the sport
  11. roll — a list
  12. present — the time now
  13. present — a gift
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. roll — a cake
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. present — there
  21. kick — in football
  22. land — to come down
  23. squash — to crush
  24. mine — for digging

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