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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. wound — an injury
  3. wound — an injury
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. cell — in biology
  6. court — of law
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. cell — a phone
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. net — after costs
  15. squash — the sport
  16. net — for catching
  17. court — for sport
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. squash — to crush
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. date — the fruit
  22. net — in sport
  23. court — of a king
  24. kick — in football

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