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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 water is too ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. mate — a partner
  4. firm — decided
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cold — an illness
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. firm — steady
  9. cap — a lid
  10. bank — of a river
  11. mate — to breed
  12. cap — a hat
  13. fall — the season
  14. bank — for money
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bat — the animal
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. fall — to drop
  19. fall — to drop
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bank — for money
  23. firm — a company
  24. mate — a friend

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