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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. cell — in biology
  6. hand — in cards
  7. capital — money
  8. spring — a coil
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. swing — music
  11. swing — in golf
  12. hand — help
  13. spring — the season
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. firm — steady
  17. spring — of water
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. firm — a company
  20. capital — a city
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — a phone
  23. swing — to play on
  24. firm — decided

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