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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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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. can — a tin
  3. can — to be able to
  4. rest — a break
  5. cold — not warm
  6. rest — what's left
  7. fine — all right
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. game — a match
  10. cold — an illness
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. fine — high quality
  16. can — a tin
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. rest — what's left

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