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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 protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. cap — a hat
  3. face — to confront
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. current — happening now
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. cap — a lid
  8. current — electric
  9. chest — of your body
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. chest — a box
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. chest — of your body
  14. wind — moving air
  15. face — to point toward
  16. current — of water
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. face — part of the head
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. wind — moving air
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. cap — of ice
  24. cabinet — ministers

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