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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

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
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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: pit · kick · hand · straw · season · ground · fine · row

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. ground — the earth
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. kick — in football
  9. season — in sport
  10. hand — in cards
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. ground — crushed
  13. ground — a position
  14. season — of the year
  15. row — to paddle
  16. pit — in a race
  17. row — a line
  18. pit — a hole
  19. hand — help
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. fine — high quality
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. fine — all right
  24. row — a quarrel

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