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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. march — music
  5. lean — thin
  6. press — to push
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. march — the month
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. march — the month
  13. kick — in football
  14. capital — money
  15. press — a publisher
  16. press — newspapers
  17. clip — for paper
  18. lean — to bend
  19. clip — a video
  20. clip — to cut
  21. capital — a city
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. patient — a sick person

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