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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: bat · squash · saw · lie · tube · land · sharp · kick

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. land — a country
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. bat — the animal
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. saw — the tool
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. squash — the sport
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. land — ground
  14. sharp — clever
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. land — to come down
  17. tube — the underground
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. tube — a container
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. saw — the tool
  22. squash — to crush
  23. kick — in football
  24. sharp — exactly

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