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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 120 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: kick · season · content · prune · degree · lean · calf · racket

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. content — happy
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. prune — to trim
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. season — in sport
  10. content — the amount
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. lean — to bend
  14. degree — an amount
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. degree — from a university
  18. prune — to trim
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. degree — temperature
  21. kick — in football
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. season — of the year
  24. lean — thin

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