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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. bat — the animal
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. track — to keep track
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. vault — a safe
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. clip — to cut
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. clip — for paper
  15. kick — in football
  16. lean — to bend
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. track — a path
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. track — a song
  21. clip — a video
  22. lean — thin
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. lean — to rest against

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