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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 116 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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. rush — hurry
  4. hand — help
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — a phone
  8. mug — a cup
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. mug — to rob
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. cell — in biology
  15. mug — a face
  16. hand — in cards
  17. pitch — completely
  18. calf — of the leg

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