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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 did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. cold — an illness
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. mate — a friend
  9. mate — a partner
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. plane — a tool
  13. wake — a trail
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. bound — obliged
  17. mate — to breed
  18. date — the fruit
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. bound — certain
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. cold — not warm
  24. bound — tied together

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