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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: date · race · kick · scale · chair · perch

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. chair — a leader
  4. kick — in football
  5. date — the fruit
  6. scale — in music
  7. perch — the fish
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. scale — size or range
  14. race — a contest
  15. race — humankind
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. race — the arms race

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