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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 120 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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Word bank
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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 water is too ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. fall — the season
  3. spring — a coil
  4. squash — to crush
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. ball — a great time
  8. fall — to drop
  9. squash — the sport
  10. cold — an illness
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. ball — a dance
  13. kick — in football
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. spring — of water
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. spring — the season
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. fall — to drop
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. calf — a young animal

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