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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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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. key — for a lock
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. key — in music
  6. net — in sport
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. bound — obliged
  9. key — the most important part
  10. kick — in football
  11. spring — the season
  12. bound — certain
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. spring — a coil
  17. bound — tied together
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. spring — of water
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. net — for catching
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. net — after costs
  24. calf — a young animal

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