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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. squash — to crush
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. mate — to breed
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. chest — of your body
  9. mate — a partner
  10. squash — the sport
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. mate — a friend
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — an injury
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — a box
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. wake — a trail
  24. nail — for a hammer

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