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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. object — a thing
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. spring — of water
  7. spring — the season
  8. cold — an illness
  9. spring — a coil
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. snap — to click
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. cold — not warm
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. object — an aim
  24. wave — of the sea

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