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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 120 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 is an ace ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. chest — a box
  4. file — a line of people
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. scale — size or range
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. wind — moving air
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. file — a document
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. craft — boats
  16. chest — of your body
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. wind — moving air
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. file — a tool
  21. chest — of your body
  22. craft — a skill
  23. scale — in music
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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