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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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. root — of a word
  3. rock — music
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. rest — a break
  6. file — a tool
  7. staff — a stick
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. rock — a stone
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. staff — employees
  12. rest — what's left
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. file — a document
  15. rest — what's left
  16. root — the cause
  17. file — a line of people
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. kid — to tease
  21. kid — child
  22. root — of a plant
  23. staff — employees
  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