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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. bat — the animal
  3. ball — a great time
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. pound — a weight
  6. rock — a stone
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. court — of a king
  11. kick — in football
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. wound — an injury
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. wound — an injury
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. branch — a division
  20. court — for sport
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. rock — music
  23. court — of law
  24. ball — a dance

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