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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: ground · calf · bass · stick · wind · kick · capital · lie

  1. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. ground — a position
  4. capital — money
  5. ground — crushed
  6. wind — moving air
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. bass — low music
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. lie — to recline
  13. kick — in football
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. wind — moving air
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. bass — the fish
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. ground — the earth
  24. capital — a city

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