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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. kid — child
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. season — in sport
  9. bank — for money
  10. clip — a video
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. kick — in football
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. sharp — clever
  15. clip — for paper
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. date — the fruit
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. bank — of a river
  21. clip — to cut
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. bank — for money
  24. season — of the year

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