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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. scale — size or range
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. last — to go on
  8. scale — in music
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. pass — a permit
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. mine — for digging
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. fine — high quality
  16. last — finally
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. last — final
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. kick — in football
  24. calf — a young animal

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