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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 120 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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. file — a line of people
  6. pitch — completely
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. fine — all right
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. chest — of your body
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. file — a document
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. wound — an injury
  19. fine — high quality
  20. chest — a box
  21. file — a tool
  22. wound — an injury
  23. kick — in football
  24. chest — of your body

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