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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. land — to come down
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — an injury
  5. spring — a coil
  6. land — a country
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. spring — the season
  10. ball — a dance
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. spring — of water
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. degree — temperature
  18. degree — an amount
  19. lean — to bend
  20. land — ground
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. lean — thin
  23. degree — from a university
  24. ball — a great time

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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