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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: lie · kick · hand · snap · mine · bear · race · rock

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. mine — for digging
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. hand — in cards
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. kick — in football
  13. bear — the animal
  14. rock — music
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. race — a contest
  17. race — the arms race
  18. bear — the animal
  19. snap — to click
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. hand — help
  23. race — humankind
  24. rock — a stone

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