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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. stock — shares
  7. cell — a phone
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. season — of the year
  10. cue — a signal
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. wind — moving air
  13. cue — for pool
  14. lean — thin
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. stock — goods
  17. lean — to bend
  18. cue — a hint
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. cell — in biology
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. wind — moving air
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. season — in sport

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