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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. chair — a leader
  10. wound — an injury
  11. tear — from crying
  12. mate — a partner
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. tear — to rip
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. land — ground
  17. land — a country
  18. mate — a friend
  19. tear — from crying
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. mate — to breed
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. wound — an injury
  24. land — to come down

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