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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. pit — in a race
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. fall — the season
  6. kick — in football
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. cold — not warm
  9. perch — the fish
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. content — happy
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — to drop
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. pit — a hole
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. content — the amount
  23. cold — an illness
  24. mouse — for a computer

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