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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. object — to protest
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. bound — obliged
  5. wound — an injury
  6. file — a line of people
  7. wound — an injury
  8. capital — a city
  9. chest — of your body
  10. object — a thing
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. bound — certain
  13. capital — money
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. object — an aim
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. chest — of your body
  19. file — a document
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. bound — tied together
  22. file — a tool
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. temple — a place of worship

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