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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. club — for golf
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. club — for dancing
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. bat — the animal
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. fine — high quality
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. lie — to recline
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. club — a group
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — to rip
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. tear — from crying
  22. kick — in football
  23. fine — all right
  24. calf — a young animal

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