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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. content — happy
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. roll — a cake
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. prune — to trim
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. cold — not warm
  11. fall — the season
  12. season — of the year
  13. fall — to drop
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. roll — a list
  18. prune — to trim
  19. content — the amount
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. cold — an illness
  22. kick — in football
  23. fall — to drop
  24. prune — the fruit

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