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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. court — of law
  8. cold — not warm
  9. clip — a video
  10. dip — to sink
  11. clip — for paper
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. can — a tin
  15. can — a tin
  16. chair — a leader
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. can — to be able to
  19. court — of a king
  20. cold — an illness
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. court — for sport
  23. clip — to cut
  24. calf — of the leg

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