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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 116 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: hand · shower · rule · game · kick · lash · safe · fine

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. hand — in cards
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. hand — help
  10. kick — in football
  11. game — a match
  12. rule — a law
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. fine — high quality
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. rule — government
  19. fine — all right
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. game — wild animals
  24. shower — rain

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