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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 116 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 ball is in your ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. court — for sport
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cell — in biology
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cue — for pool
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. cell — a phone
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. rest — what's left
  12. rest — what's left
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. court — of a king
  15. branch — a division
  16. cue — a hint
  17. cue — a signal
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. cold — not warm
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. rest — a break
  24. court — of law

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