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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. content — happy
  5. cap — a lid
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. race — the arms race
  8. content — the amount
  9. pound — a weight
  10. pop — soda
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. race — humankind
  14. race — a contest
  15. cap — a hat
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. pop — to visit
  20. file — a line of people
  21. file — a document
  22. pop — music
  23. cap — of ice
  24. file — a 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