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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. game — a match
  4. prune — to trim
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. wake — a trail
  9. can — to be able to
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. scale — size or range
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. scale — in music
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. can — a tin
  22. kick — in football
  23. game — wild animals
  24. prune — to trim

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