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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. net — for catching
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. ball — a great time
  8. dip — to sink
  9. snap — to click
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. cold — not warm
  12. net — after costs
  13. can — a tin
  14. can — a tin
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. net — in sport
  19. cold — an illness
  20. ball — a dance
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. lie — to recline

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