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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. march — music
  5. cold — an illness
  6. drill — army training
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. hand — in cards
  9. drill — the tool
  10. squash — to crush
  11. march — the month
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. hand — help
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. pass — a permit
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. drill — a practice
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. march — the month
  23. cold — not warm
  24. squash — the sport

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