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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. file — a document
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. cold — not warm
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a tool
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. cold — an illness
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. fine — all right
  22. fine — high quality
  23. fork — in a road
  24. fork — a garden tool

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