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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. firm — a company
  4. firm — steady
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. row — a line
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. branch — a division
  12. firm — decided
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. kick — in football
  16. dip — to sink
  17. date — the fruit
  18. march — the month
  19. row — to paddle
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. march — music
  23. march — the month
  24. date — on the calendar

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