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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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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. shower — rain
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. land — a country
  6. cold — not warm
  7. craft — boats
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. cue — for pool
  10. race — the arms race
  11. race — a contest
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. cue — a hint
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. land — to come down
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. shower — to wash
  18. land — ground
  19. cold — an illness
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. cue — a signal
  22. craft — a skill
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. race — humankind

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