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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. game — wild animals
  6. tear — from crying
  7. field — farmland
  8. game — a match
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. tear — from crying
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. field — for sport
  18. field — a subject
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. capital — a city
  22. tear — to rip
  23. deal — to handle
  24. stand — to bear

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