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

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. race — the arms race
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. race — humankind
  5. last — to go on
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. race — a contest
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. last — final
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. trunk — of an elephant

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