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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. fall — to drop
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. wake — a trail
  7. mine — for digging
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. kick — in football
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. cell — in biology
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — the season
  22. cell — a phone
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. coach — a trainer

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