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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 116 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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. tear — from crying
  3. cold — not warm
  4. file — a document
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. can — a tin
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. can — to be able to
  9. cold — an illness
  10. row — to paddle
  11. tear — from crying
  12. row — a line
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. file — a tool
  17. tear — to rip
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. stem — to come from
  20. file — a line of people
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. can — a tin
  24. racket — a loud noise

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