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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.

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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. branch — a division
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. capital — a city
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. capital — money
  16. kick — in football
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. fork — in a road

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