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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. last — finally
  3. mate — a partner
  4. mate — a friend
  5. stand — to bear
  6. file — a tool
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. kick — in football
  10. prune — to trim
  11. last — to go on
  12. file — a document
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. last — final
  15. rock — a stone
  16. game — wild animals
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. game — a match
  19. file — a line of people
  20. prune — to trim
  21. mate — to breed
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. rock — music

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