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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. object — an aim
  4. cold — an illness
  5. spring — of water
  6. rest — a break
  7. cue — a signal
  8. cold — not warm
  9. stock — goods
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. object — a thing
  12. rest — what's left
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. cue — for pool
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. cue — a hint
  18. rest — what's left
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. spring — the season
  21. object — to protest
  22. saw — the tool
  23. spring — a coil
  24. stock — shares

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