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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. shower — to wash
  4. kick — in football
  5. face — to confront
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. shower — rain
  8. face — part of the head
  9. land — to come down
  10. file — a tool
  11. face — to point toward
  12. land — ground
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. land — a country
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. file — a line of people
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. file — a document

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