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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. cap — of ice
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. game — wild animals
  6. race — humankind
  7. game — a match
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cell — a phone
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. staff — employees
  12. cap — a lid
  13. cold — an illness
  14. staff — a stick
  15. cold — not warm
  16. fine — all right
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. race — a contest
  19. cap — a hat
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. race — the arms race
  22. fine — high quality
  23. game — a kind of play
  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