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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. branch — a division
  5. face — part of the head
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. lean — to bend
  8. kick — in football
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. wound — an injury
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. lean — thin
  15. capital — a city
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. capital — money
  19. face — to point toward
  20. root — of a word
  21. wound — an injury
  22. root — the cause
  23. root — of a plant
  24. face — to confront

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