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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. last — finally
  3. race — a contest
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. root — the cause
  7. mate — a partner
  8. race — humankind
  9. mine — for digging
  10. cue — a hint
  11. cue — a signal
  12. root — of a word
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. root — of a plant
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. cue — for pool
  18. mate — a friend
  19. race — the arms race
  20. mate — to breed
  21. last — to go on
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. last — final
  24. patient — a sick person

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