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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. present — there
  4. last — final
  5. net — in sport
  6. cold — an illness
  7. bark — to shout
  8. net — for catching
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. present — the time now
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. present — a gift
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. cold — not warm
  17. last — to go on
  18. last — finally
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. net — after costs
  24. hide — animal skin

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