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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. bank — for money
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. court — for sport
  8. bank — of a river
  9. court — of a king
  10. tube — the underground
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. kick — in football
  13. tube — a container
  14. club — for golf
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. bank — for money
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. club — for dancing
  19. club — a group
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. court — of law
  24. tube — in a tire

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