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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. row — to paddle
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. mark — a grade
  7. mark — a trace
  8. staff — employees
  9. kick — in football
  10. staff — employees
  11. last — to go on
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. row — a line
  15. clip — a video
  16. staff — a stick
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. pitch — completely
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. clip — to cut
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. clip — for paper
  23. last — final
  24. last — finally

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