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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. ball — a great time
  3. degree — from a university
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. degree — an amount
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. prune — to trim
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. degree — temperature
  14. foot — a measure
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. ball — a dance
  20. pitch — completely
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — moving air
  23. prune — to trim
  24. prune — the fruit

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