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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. False peace will not ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. last — to go on
  3. clip — a video
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. root — the cause
  6. kick — in football
  7. clip — to cut
  8. firm — steady
  9. season — in sport
  10. root — of a plant
  11. firm — decided
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. can — to be able to
  14. root — of a word
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. clip — for paper
  17. last — finally
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. last — final
  20. can — a tin
  21. season — of the year
  22. can — a tin
  23. firm — a company
  24. season — to add flavour

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