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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  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 — a thrill
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. rest — a break
  4. field — for sport
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — what's left
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. net — after costs
  10. field — farmland
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. net — for catching
  15. field — a subject
  16. wax — to grow
  17. net — in sport
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. date — the fruit
  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