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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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. board — to get on
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. board — a committee
  5. game — a match
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. rock — music
  8. row — a line
  9. tear — from crying
  10. rule — a law
  11. saw — the tool
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. tear — to rip
  15. row — to paddle
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. rule — government
  20. saw — the tool
  21. tear — from crying
  22. game — wild animals
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. rock — a stone

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