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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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. race — humankind
  6. race — the arms race
  7. cold — not warm
  8. clip — for paper
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. clip — a video
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. cap — a hat
  18. race — a contest
  19. kick — in football
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. clip — to cut
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. cap — a lid
  24. calf — of the leg

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