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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 did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. rule — a law
  7. object — an aim
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. race — humankind
  10. lean — to bend
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. last — final
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cold — not warm
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. object — to protest
  17. race — a contest
  18. race — the arms race
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. rule — government
  21. object — a thing
  22. last — to go on
  23. lean — thin
  24. last — finally

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