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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. mug — a face
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. march — music
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. march — the month
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. cold — not warm
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. march — the month
  15. mug — a cup
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. mug — to rob
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. sharp — clever
  24. cold — an illness

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