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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. sharp — clever
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. bound — tied together
  7. bound — obliged
  8. last — to go on
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. squash — to crush
  12. squash — the sport
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. last — final
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. cold — not warm
  19. last — finally
  20. bound — certain
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. cold — an illness
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. sharp — with an edge

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