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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. spell — a short time
  3. race — humankind
  4. kid — to tease
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. cap — of ice
  7. cap — a hat
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. race — the arms race
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. spell — magic
  13. spell — letters
  14. clip — to cut
  15. can — a tin
  16. can — a tin
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. clip — for paper
  19. cap — a lid
  20. can — to be able to
  21. race — a contest
  22. clip — a video
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. hide — to keep secret

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