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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: tear · kick · wound · chair · snap · toast · cap · present

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. kick — in football
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. tear — from crying
  5. chair — a leader
  6. present — a gift
  7. wound — an injury
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. cap — of ice
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. tear — from crying
  15. present — there
  16. snap — to click
  17. tear — to rip
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. toast — bread
  20. present — the time now
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. wound — an injury
  23. cap — a hat
  24. cap — a lid

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