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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. march — the month
  6. row — to paddle
  7. ball — a dance
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. bank — for money
  10. march — music
  11. field — a subject
  12. game — wild animals
  13. kick — in football
  14. game — a match
  15. field — farmland
  16. field — for sport
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. row — a line
  21. ball — a great time
  22. march — the month
  23. bank — of a river
  24. bank — for money

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