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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. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. mine — for digging
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. kick — in football
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. squash — to crush
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. row — a line
  16. squash — the sport
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. pitch — completely
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. row — to paddle
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. mine — belonging to me

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