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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. rule — a law
  4. can — a tin
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. rule — government
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. race — humankind
  11. race — a contest
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. can — a tin
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — to shout
  16. race — the arms race
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. rule — to rule out

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