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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. wound — an injury
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. degree — an amount
  6. fork — in a road
  7. field — farmland
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. wound — an injury
  10. kick — in football
  11. field — a subject
  12. bulb — for light
  13. degree — temperature
  14. field — for sport
  15. degree — from a university
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. bulb — for light

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