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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: face · bat · kick · kid · chip · pitcher · prune · lash

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. face — to confront
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. face — part of the head
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. kid — child
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. kid — to tease
  13. kick — in football
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. prune — to trim
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. chip — to eat
  19. face — to point toward
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. chip — for betting
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. prune — to trim
  24. bat — the animal

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