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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. tear — from crying
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. mate — a partner
  6. wax — to grow
  7. kick — in football
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. mate — to breed
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. stem — to come from
  12. tear — to rip
  13. net — in sport
  14. net — for catching
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. tear — from crying
  18. sharp — clever
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. mate — a friend
  23. net — after costs
  24. calf — of the leg

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