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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 120 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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. last — finally
  4. vault — a safe
  5. chip — for betting
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. chip — to eat
  9. field — farmland
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. kick — in football
  12. ground — crushed
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. ground — the earth
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. field — for sport
  18. ground — a position
  19. field — a subject
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. last — final
  22. last — to go on
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. mouse — the animal

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