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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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468
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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. bore — to tire
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. bore — to drill
  7. cell — in biology
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. track — to keep track
  10. spring — of water
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. spring — the season
  14. track — a path
  15. track — a song
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. craft — a skill
  20. craft — boats
  21. cell — a phone
  22. spring — a coil
  23. perch — the fish
  24. kick — in football

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