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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 had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. bound — tied together
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — of your body
  7. track — a path
  8. tube — a container
  9. bound — obliged
  10. bound — certain
  11. squash — to crush
  12. chest — a box
  13. squash — the sport
  14. ground — a position
  15. track — a song
  16. tube — the underground
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. track — to keep track
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. ground — crushed
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. ground — the earth

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