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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  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. calf — a young animal
  2. fall — the season
  3. roll — a cake
  4. chest — a box
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. saw — the tool
  7. scale — size or range
  8. chest — of your body
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. court — of a king
  11. chest — of your body
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. roll — a list
  14. court — of law
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. fall — to drop
  19. cell — a phone
  20. court — for sport
  21. fall — to drop
  22. cell — in biology
  23. scale — in music
  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