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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. mate — to breed
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. vault — a safe
  6. present — a gift
  7. cold — not warm
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. present — there
  12. kick — in football
  13. clip — to cut
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. mate — a partner
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. net — for catching
  18. clip — a video
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. net — in sport
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. mate — a friend
  23. clip — for paper
  24. net — after costs

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