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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. kick — in football
  6. field — for sport
  7. clip — to cut
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. clip — a video
  16. field — a subject
  17. clip — for paper
  18. field — farmland

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