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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. saw — the tool
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. charge — in control
  6. snap — to click
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. charge — a price
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. dip — to sink
  11. last — final
  12. last — to go on
  13. saw — the tool
  14. last — finally
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. wind — moving air
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. wind — moving air
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. charge — electricity

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