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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. content — happy
  4. clip — for paper
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. content — the amount
  7. suit — clothes
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. kick — in football
  10. root — of a word
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. suit — in cards
  13. root — of a plant
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. clip — to cut
  16. clip — a video
  17. bore — to drill
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. root — the cause
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. bore — to tire
  24. suit — to fit

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