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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: leaves · shower · game · hand · row · kick · saw · pit

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. game — wild animals
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. saw — the tool
  7. shower — rain
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. row — a line
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. hand — in cards
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. row — to paddle
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. saw — the tool
  17. hand — help
  18. kick — in football
  19. pit — a hole
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. shower — to wash
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. game — a match

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