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

Word bank: kick · patient · kid · file · date · swing

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. 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. patient — calm and waiting
  3. file — a line of people
  4. swing — in golf
  5. swing — to play on
  6. date — the fruit
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. kid — child
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. kick — in football
  11. swing — music
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. file — a document
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. kid — to tease
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. file — a tool
  18. 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