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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. stand — to bear
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. pit — in a race
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. kid — child
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. bat — the animal
  11. pit — a hole
  12. perch — the fish
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. cold — an illness
  24. kid — to tease

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