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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. tear — from crying
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. clip — to cut
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. tear — to rip
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. tear — from crying
  15. clip — for paper
  16. tube — the underground
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. stem — to come from
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. tube — a container
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. clip — a video

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