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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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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: chest · staff · stick · net · lie · kick · wound · shower

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. net — after costs
  4. net — in sport
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. lie — to recline
  7. staff — employees
  8. chest — of your body
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. net — for catching
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. staff — employees
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. chest — of your body
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. staff — a stick
  19. shower — to wash
  20. chest — a box
  21. shower — rain
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. wound — an injury

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